


In This Lies My Honor and Reward

by MarigoldFlowers, Mook_aron



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Hyuuga Hinata, BAMF Nara Shikamaru, BAMF Naruto, BAMF Sakura, BAMF Sasuke, BAMF Team 7, Families of Choice, Family Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fuuinjutsu Master Uzumaki Naruto, How Do I Tag, M/M, Naruto has issues, Protective Kurama, Protective Uchiha Sasuke, Sakura has issues, Sasuke Has Issues, Sasuke is Not going crazy :), Shikamaru is a bonafide genius, Strong Team Seven, TEAM SEVEN DONE RIGHT, Team 7 - Freeform, Team as Family, Uzushio shenanigans, Uzushiogakure | Hidden Eddy Village, character arcs are hard, everybody has issues, fluffly filler, no shame whatsoever, so Everyone Is Ok, there, will add more characters as the story progresses, you know what - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2019-05-26
Packaged: 2019-07-02 07:05:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15791463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarigoldFlowers/pseuds/MarigoldFlowers, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mook_aron/pseuds/Mook_aron
Summary: Uzushio may have been obliterated, down to rubble and dust and bone-- but Uzushio had always been far more than a city, far more than bricks and mortar and sun-gold tiles.Uzushio had been a home, a sanctuary and a kingdom-- and the ghosts of seals cannot be unwritten, awaiting the blood of its blood and heart of its heart.Team 7-- if things had fallen into place, if the Uzumaki had a little more forethought and if Kakashi forgot, just for a moment, the ghosts of the past.The Konoha Nine-- if bonds were tighter, time was shorter and the destruction of a nation was enough motivation to push forward.For all that Naruto knew, he was just another dead-last student. A failure that everyone would rather forget. But there were things far greater than he was, and curses weren't always set into stone. He had his team by his side, after all.





	1. Even In Dreams

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my first writing and co-writing with Mook_aron. GO READ HER FICS THEY'RE BEAUTIFUL 
> 
> anyway~ this is the first chapter of a pretty long story. Updates will be sporadic, or monthly idk depends on whether or not I decide to binge-watch anime all day. I hope you enjoy! Love, Marigold
> 
> oh hi there, I'm the other (mostly absent) author/beta reader! I hope you guys love it lmao <3 Mook_aron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't want to create a story that drags on about redemption arcs for 3-4 chapters, so I'll just start with an already (slightly?) re-vamped Sasuke % Sakura, plus Kakashi. (And Kurama :)) I know that this is an unconventional choice that most authors would never write, but I want to focus on other aspects in the story. I am still a novice writer, so please forgive me for any mistakes/errors/weird typos that appear in the story at any time. Thank you and enjoy!

**_\\*Oi, Naruto. Wake up. You have training today*_ ** _. _ A breathy voice murmured. Naruto opened his eyes, still bleary from the morning haze. Kurama was awake before him, surprisingly. That fox slept like the dead most of the time. 

 

"Hnngh..." 

 

Was all Naruto could be bothered to get out before promptly going back to sleep. He stayed up until the ungodly hours of the night the day before and wasn't about to answer to a wake-up call. Besides, Kakashi-sensei was never on time, even when the schedule was changed to his liking. 

 

The bijuu sighed heavily at his poor response, curling a hint of his chakra out of Naruto's seal, preparing to slap him awake. Naruto barely blinked at the action, and the tail rose higher and made its descent.  

 

"I'm awake! I'm awake!" Naruto cried, sitting up and glaring at the tail of red chakra staring right back at him. It was inches away from his face. Kurama chuckled, pulling back his tail. 

 

**_*Get your ass out of bed, brat. You're supposed to meet them on the bridge at eight thirty.*_ **

 

Naruto frowned at the reminder. He wasn't sure when the Kyuubi no Kitsune became his surrogate mother, but that fox was definitely more of a softie than he was letting on. At least Kurama wasn't biting his head off every time Naruto tried to talk to him anymore. 

 

It'd been two years since Naruto became friends with the bijuu. At first, they were both hesitant to open up to each other- seeing as they were the cause of each other's problems. Naruto, Kurama's jailer; and Kurama, Naruto's reason for being an outcast. They were past all that now. It was a new beginning for both of them. A chance to begin anew partners and friends rather than enemies. 

 

Naruto climbed up from his bed, stifling a yawn and casting a glance at the alarm. It reads 8:00. He wasn't late at all. 

 

"Kurama," Naruto started, grumbling. The Kyuubi smirked in response, a flash of sharp teeth and amusement. 

 

**_*It's a good habit to get up early, you know. Besides, you need to eat breakfast.*_ **

 

The thought of food had his stomach growling, and he pouted. Naruto wanted nothing more than to crawl back under the covers and just go to sleep for an entire week, but he knew better than that. Besides, Sasuke and Sakura would most likely decapitate him for sleeping that long. He had a habit of doing that. 

 

After all, they were going to learn fuuinjutsu today, and that was something his mother had been good at, according to Kurama. If there was a chance that Naruto could learn something about his parents besides the things the Kyuubi told him, he would do anything to gain just the slightest connection. The thought made his smile waver, but that was an emotion he couldn’t bear to face in the morning, much less right before training, so he pushed it away. 

 

His mother. A fuinjutsu master. Perhaps Naruto would follow in her footsteps one day. 

 

Summoning up what little energy he could muster, Naruto took a deep breath and steadied himself. 

 

"Okay! Let's get to it!" 

 

___

 

By the time Naruto arrived at the bridge, he was coated with a thin layer of sweat. The beginning of summer did little to ease the humidity of the Land of Fire, especially when it just rained yesterday. He huffed a sigh, but grinned when he saw Sasuke and Sakura waiting for him. The two were leaning against the railing, talking idly. 

 

"Morning, Sasuke, Sakura-chan." Naruto waved exuberantly, walking towards them. Sasuke glared, though the effect of the mullish expression was ruined by the traitorous quirk of his lips. 

 

"Morning," Sakura greeted back. She was twirling her pink hair absently, staring off into space. "I see Kakashi-sensei decided to be late again." She pointed out, per usual. Naruto followed her gaze. 

 

Sasuke huffed, a dark look in his eyes as he scanned the outline of the forest as if their jounin team-leader would pop out of the trees. Their sensei was a pain at times, always cropping up in odd places, at equally odd times. 

 

Sakura frowned and rolled her eyes. “Always reading porn in public- one would think the man had no sense of moral decency.” She let out an amused huff, glancing at her teammates.

 

"Always late, and has the emotional range of a chair." Sasuke muttered under his breath in response to Sakura. Naruto's eyebrows raised at Sasuke's words. 

 

"You're one to talk."  

 

"Shut up, loser." 

  
  


Team seven settled back into their familiar banter, trading stories back and forth all while making jabs at their absent team teacher. Lost in the midst of their banter, none of the trio notices the silver-haired jounin lounging on a branch nearby. He smiled, well hidden under the dark fabric of his mask, recalling a time when the three could barely stand each other's company.

 

It struck a chord within Kakashi, the way they laughed and joked as if they had been friends for years. His hand tugged to his eye, though it drifted down to his Icha-Icha instead. 

 

Kakashi jumped down from the branches, making his way towards his students. 

 

"Morning, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakur-" 

 

"You're late." The three muttered in unison, scowling up at him with vicious eyes. Kakashi took a step back and placed his hands up in surrender. His genin might just be genin- but they knew their way around pointy weapons and he didn’t want to tempt them.

 

"Mah, it's a one-time thing." He said, though that was obviously a blatant lie. Almost all of their training sessions started with him being at least a few hours late, but that was on purpose. If team seven could handle being alone with each other, then he’d done his job. 

 

Kakashi paused in his thoughts. He turned his back to his students, waving them to another clearing field with one hand. 

 

“Let’s get started, shall we?” He drawled, and pulled out a single sealing scroll. There was a distinct gasp from Naruto, though it was quickly muffled by the sound of an undone seal. Kakashi settled them on a grassy field, placing each individual item on the ground next to him. The seal he used was a simple one; almost all shinobi relied on it at some point or another. Uzushio may have been the ultimate master of the Sealing Arts, but there was a reason why their abilities were so sought after. They were incredibly useful. 

 

He studied the faces of his students. Sasuke held a borderline annoyed expression on his face, though it practically mirrored all of his other ones. Sakura seemed the same as usual. Naruto, though. He practically jumped with excitement. It was.. Strange. Kakashi pondered on it for a second. Naruto wasn’t supposed to know anything about sealing unless he’d learned it from a textbook, but-- 

 

This was going to be an  _ interesting  _ lesson. 

 

"Fuuinjutsu is an important part of shinobi life. You can use it to make exploding tags, sealing scrolls, anything that can be contained is influenced by this specific type of chakra manipulation." Kakashi continued, pointing at an inked paper and rolled up bamboo scrolls.  As he watched for everyone's reaction, it seemed that Naruto was the only one who was on his toes. It was quite rare for him to be, too. 

 

Kushina was like this, once upon a time. The thought was humbling, knowing that he was responsible for forming these children into shinobi who could  _ endure. _

 

Kakashi swallowed heavily, knowing that fuuinjutsu was the glory and downfall of the Uzumaki clan. Konoha sealing masters were seen as newborns when compared to the legendary ones in Uzushiogakure. It was practically fate for Naruto to be interested in his family's legacy without even knowing it ever existed. 

 

But as much as he wanted to show Naruto something about his past, his other teammates needed a wake-up call. Kakashi paused from his lecture, and gestured to the forest around them. 

 

"Three laps around the base of the mountain. Go." 

 

The complaining from the three might as well have been wake-up calls for the entirety of Konoha. 

 

Kakashi watched their retreating forms, nothing more than a hazy light in the morning dew. He returned to his scrolls, dragging a brush pen across the paper, preparing the seals he needed. 

 

Distinctly, he wondered if Naruto would have gotten the chance to learn Uzushio style fuinjutsu were it not for the destruction of the village. His people. 

 

Kushina was sent from Uzushiogakure to be a jinchuuriki, but also as a safety net from the collateral damage of the fighting between Iwagakure and Kirigakure. She was to be clan leader, after all. However, after the destruction of the village, there was no more clan for her to lead, apart from her own family. And when she and Minato died, the role would have been passed on to Naruto... 

 

It pained him to keep such information from Naruto, but seeing as they were the Sandaime's orders, Kakashi had no choice but to obey. 

 

_ Obey, obey. _

 

It seemed that was all he could do. 

 

Kakashi shook his head, banishing his thoughts. It would be useless to think of that now. He had to focus on the task at hand. 

 

Dipping his brush in ink, Kakashi drew it across the paper in smooth, neat strokes. Simple sealing jutsus, designed for genin. The plan for their training in Fuinjutsu would be short, but considering that there wasn't much material to learn, it was to be expected of the art.  

 

First, sealing jutsus for the three of them to recognize and break. Then, creating and unraveling the steps in making a proper seal. The last step was to learn to apply seals to weapons, according to the official handbook.

 

Screw the official handbook. 

 

Kakashi's team was more than capable of making and memorizing seals.  Glancing up from his work, the jounin leader stood up to welcome back the three sweaty genin. 

 

"Ah, back already?" Kakashi joked. 

 

The three were sweating like pigs. 

 

Killing intent radiated off of them like heat. Sasuke had his Sharingan activated, and his arms were crossed. Sakura and Naruto mimicked his stance, and together they resembled the Legendary Sannin;  complete with murderous looks and commanding presence. Kakashi, it seemed, raised a few monsters of his own. 

 

"I'll have your head by tomorrow morning." Sasuke murmured. 

 

Naruto nodded, squinting up at Kakashi. "His hair's mine." 

 

"Hm," Sakura hummed thoughtfully. "I'm taking the money." 

 

And together team seven smiled eerily innocent smiles, while Kakashi was dying on the inside. 

 

___

 

Naruto was definitely one of the strangest shinobi Sasuke had ever met. One minute he was a blubbering fool and the next, a prodigy rivaling that of his brother. He may be dense as a rock and bat-shit crazy, but he was strong. 

 

Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura had been training in the fields for the past six hours, taking breaks now and then. It seemed like a tight schedule to most people, but the chuunin exams were on the edge of the horizon, and they weren't about to slack off any time soon. Fuuinjutsu was harder than it looked. It didn't even occur to Sasuke that there would be thousands of fuinjutsu techniques, but apparently, they had to memorize them all. 

 

According to Kakashi, anyway. And no one ever knew if the masked jounin was joking or perfectly serious.

 

Sasuke watched Naruto across the stream, cooling off by scrubbing the sweat and grime off his face using the cold water. Kakashi, being the try-hard that he was, decided to rig their usual training regime with explosive tags to ' _ motivate them _ ' and force them to seal items under pressure. 

 

Naruto did better than Sasuke and Sakura combined. 

 

Sasuke had no idea where his sudden expertise in fuuinjutsu came from, but he sure as hell was dying to find out. 

 

"Oi, loser." 

 

Naruto looked up, raising an eyebrow in annoyance at the nickname. Sasuke smirked in delight. Naruto was always someone who was easily annoyed, no matter how focused he was on something. 

 

"Where'd you learn to do fuinjutsu so well?" Sasuke asked, fingers deftly picking away at the ash buried in his hair. 

 

And just like that, Naruto's face fell. He turned, ducking his head away from Sasuke's vision. That was unexpected. What did Sasuke say wrong? Sasuke narrowed his eyes, studying his teammate. Very rarely did Naruto ever get  _ actually  _ bothered by anything Sasuke said. 

 

"My-" Naruto started, brows creased in worry. "My mom was," He blew out a breath, moving his blond hair out of his face. There was anger hidden in the firm slant of his mouth, a quiver in his brow that made Sasuke pause. 

 

"Supposedly one of the best fuinjutsu masters." He finished, glancing away from Sasuke eyes. 

 

Oh.  _ Oh _ . 

 

Sasuke wasn't stupid enough to ignore the past tense in his teammate's sentence, nor the sadness lingering in the blond's eyes like a summer rainstorm. He recognized the pain, heart clenching at the memory of his own mother. They were both orphans, left behind with nothing more than a painful reminder that they were complete and utterly alone in the world. 

 

Sasuke gave him the barest hint of a nod. 

 

A heartbeat passed, then some. The tension in the air was thick, but both boys were too lost in their own thoughts to notice. It was hard to keep himself from descending into old memories and faded scars, but Sauske managed. He was used to it;  growing up in the same place where his family was murdered gave him some leeway to emotional disconnection. 

 

"So, are you excited?" Naruto finally looked Sasuke in the eye, a smile replacing the grim, empty look he was sporting earlier. His desire to change the subject was evident.

 

Sasuke complied. "About what?" 

 

Naruto flashed a bright grin, giving the Uchiha a big thumbs up. 

"We have our first C-rank mission next week!" 

 

"You're that excited? About a C-rank mission?" Sasuke asked, firing back despite himself. That Uzumaki's attitude was contagious. “ _ Technically,  _ we’ve already had something higher in level. A C-rank is nothing.” He added, because their mission to Wave shouldn’t be forgotten  _ that  _ easily. 

 

Naruto rolled his eyes in mock irritation. “But what about the  _ pay,  _ Sasuke? I want to get  _ paid.”  _

 

"Who's getting paid?" Sakura chimed in, rinsing her hands with a towel. 

 

___

 

Hyuuga Hinata didn't know what to do with herself. After yet another day of training by hands of her merciless father, she was  _ more  _ than ready to pass out. At the academy, she was always a bit surprised to find that no one else's parents beat their kids to the point of exhaustion, and that no one else came to school bearing more abuse than a jounin ninja. 

 

But she was Hyuuga, and that was what was expected of her. 

 

Hinata stared up at the stars, wishing that she was never born. The Hyuuga reject, a pariah in her own family. Useless. Pathetic.  _ Weak.  _

 

She cradled her swollen, bloody hands, and sighed. There weren't many places where she could be complete and utterly alone, but the top of Konoha mountain was one of them. At least from here, she could be separated from her clan. 

 

Hinata watched Konoha from above, warily eyeing the Hyuuga compound in the darkness. It spread out like a labyrinth of houses, covering a good quarter of the Shinobi grounds of Konoha. Though they weren’t as numerous as the Uchiha once had been, they were still one of the larger clans-- they had reputation along with it, too. She knew everyone by name, and while a great deal of clan members tolerated her-- 

 

She had at least a half-hour before they would wonder where she had gone, and go looking.  

 

Thirty minutes to herself was more than enough. 

 

She took out a small medic pack hidden beneath the layers of her kimono, setting the items in it on the cold stones of the mountain. It was packed to the brim with painkillers, gauze, stitches, and bandages. They were all half-used, and she only bought it a few days ago. Hinata prepared a clean swab, dipping it in cleansing alcohol and applying it to her arms. The bleeding had stopped, but it was on the verge of an infection, and she had to take care of that before it got any worse. 

 

The first touch stung, and Hinata clenched her teeth to keep from screaming. The cuts were deep, and already starting to swell. It was nestled beside dozens of other fading scars. Scars she knew would stay with her for a lifetime. 

 

It was almost like a brand. 

 

Arms shaking with pain, she turned once again to the bag and took a needle, threading it with surgical silk. Carefully, she pulled the skin over the folds of the cut and began.

 

By now, she was used to it. Although Hinata was nowhere near a medical-nin and had no experience healing herself with ninjutsu, she could at least do the bare minimum. After all, she had lots of time to practice on herself. 

 

Dots of blood seeped through the silk, turning the almost transparent color crimson. It was designed to dissolve after several weeks, so at least that was working in her favor. 

 

Everything else wasn't, though. Training was about as challenging as an A-rank mission, except there was an absolute guarantee that Hinata would be hurt. Her father pitted her against Neji and Hanabi, who were both more skilled than any other Hyuuga their age. It was the same routine every single day. Wake up, eat, train with Kurenai, practice with the Hyuuga, sleep.  _ Over and over again.  _

 

Hinata refused to hurt Neji and Hanabi every time. No matter how hard her father coerced her with force, no matter how much everyone else screamed at her, spat in her face, hit her— she refused to hurt them. 

 

Because Hanabi and Neji were the only family that truly loved her, no matter how long ago that was. And she wouldn't ever dare hurt her most precious people. Only protect. 

 

That was what Hinata's mother had told her before she died.

 

_ 'Protect who you love.'  _

 

Protect who she loved? Or who loved her back? Because it seemed the only ones who actually cared about her well being was Kurenai-sensei and her team— and even then, only as classmates. 

 

It was so unfair, so cruel. She loved Hanabi and Neji with all her heart, never wavered to protect them, care for them and yet-  And yet... 

 

It was just better for her to die. 

 

Hinata paused her stitching, gasping when she realized that in her haze of thoughts, she ended up doing more harm than good to her wounds. Dabbing the cleanser once more, she returned to it with steadier hands. The sun was long gone from the horizon, and along with it, the warmth of day. Hinata shivered, pulling her Kimono closer. 

 

Her time was almost up. Hinata had to return home. 

 

_ Home _ . 

 

Vaguely, she wondered if she would ever have such a thing. 

 

___

 

It had been a long time since Sasuke had nightmares of his brother. And yet here he was once again, in the cold Uchiha compound, surrounded by the bodies of his clan. The memory of seeing his grandparents and cousins laying dead on the floor was more than enough to make him want to empty his stomach. The once beautiful bamboo-wood columns were etched with the blood of staggering people who leaned into the structure for support. There were faces of his friends, his cousins, his  _ people.  _ All of them stared back at him like empty dolls, their mouths hanging open as if they had something to say. 

 

And there was Itachi, back turned to him and sword drawn, his parent's corpses on the ground. Sasuke remembered it all-too-clearly, the look on Itachi's face as he faced him, eyes shining a deep red hue. 

"I-Itachi?" Sasuke whispered, hugging the door to the main bedroom. It provided a temporary for the fear crawling up his spine. 

" _ Why- _ what-" 

 

"My foolish little brother." Itachi spat, spinning a kunai in his free hand. 

 

Sasuke shrank back beneath his brother's stare, eyes trained on his mother. She was beside his father, eyes blank and staring at Sasuke. His hands started to shake, whether from anger or horror, he didn't know. For a second all Sasuke could see was his brother’s Mangekyou Sharingan swirling lazily in a pattern of red and black. Panicked, terrified, and weary from grief, Sasuke melted against the frame in an attempt to make himself seem smaller. There was nowhere for him to run, nowhere for him to go, and with the room filled with the stench of blood it was taking everything in Sasuke to keep himself sane. Itachi huffed a laugh. 

 

Suddenly, Sasuke felt the cold touch of metal against his throat, aimed to kill. His knees staggered at the sight of the kunai blade held to him. The smooth metal gleamed against rays of moonlight. 

"I told you I would get you." Itachi raised the tip higher, tipping Sasuke's head towards the ceiling. All he could see was the cream-colored walls, ruined by red stains. There were handprints among the splatters, laid out like a mural. 

 

Sasuke's blood ran cold. His legs buckled, and he collapsed on the floor with heaving sobs.

 

"Please, I- I don't-" He begged as tears flooded his vision. 

 

_ I don't want to die.  _

 

Itachi curled the kunai, pressing its blade into Sasuke's skin, and in one neat stroke, slit his throat. 

 

___

 

Sasuke struggled for breath as his throat closed in panic, and sat up abruptly. He was drenched in sweat, cheeks warm with tears as he struggled to remember how to  _ breathe _ , how to make his lungs take in oxygen. 

 

_ Itachi.  _

 

_ Mother. Father.  _

 

Sasuke cradled his head, digging into his hair with frustration.  _ Why? Why?  _ Why them, out of everyone in the world? Why would his brother, who loved him and cared for him, suddenly kill everyone? His whole body shook with pain, and Sasuke cried with shame heating his face. It’d been years since he’d felt such agony. 

 

He cried for his cousins, for his parents, for the children who had their lives taken before they had the chance to enjoy them. 

 

He cried for himself, the sole survivor of the massacre. 

 

He sobbed until his tears were no more than choked up hiccups, dying down into exhausted sniffles. His eyes felt dry now, as if he hadn’t poured out his grief and the irony was not lost on him.

 

Sasuke stood up shakily on wobbly legs, wiping away any remnants of tears. He couldn't stay any longer, couldn't bear to live in the same house where his entire family was slaughtered. Once, he had considered it his home. But home without his family was merely an empty shell of what it once used to be-- a simple house far too large for one child to live in. 

 

Hesitantly he placed a hand against the walls, guiding himself under cover of darkness. The walls were once painted in the blood of his clan, he knew. It had all been scrubbed away, but for a second he thought he could see the bodies again, could feel the devastating killing intent. 

 

Sasuke closed his eyes, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, the iron-copper tang metallic on his tongue as he licked it away absentmindedly. 

 

He stopped just outside the gates, stumbling at the sight of the Uchiha crest. 

 

He hated that figure. Hated the compound. Hated his name. Hated his brother. 

 

Hated the horrible burden placed on him by someone who used to love him. 

 

He walked up to it, touching the red and white fan with delicate hands. Sasuke swallowed the sob in his throat, his body giving up and forcing him to lean against the stone. The coolness of the wall brought relief to him, especially when the night was as humid and hot as the sheen of sweat on his face. 

 

Why did it have to be him?

 

_ How pathetic, _ Sasuke thought. The last Uchiha, crying and stumbling around in his own house, begging before the very symbol of his clan.

 

But, there was nowhere for him to go. The compound was as much a jailer to him as a graveyard. The memories could be repressed, but the emotions behind them could not, and no matter how hard Sasuke tried, they threatened to devour him whole.

 

_ But...  _

 

There was someone he could rely on. It would destroy his pride, but his mind was running wild, and comfort simply didn’t exist in his clan home. 

 

At least, not anymore. 

 

___

 

The last thing Naruto wanted was to be awoken at the ungodly hours of the night by such urgent knocks they sounded more like bombs. Who was even awake this late? 

 

Naruto forced himself out of bed, dragging his sleepy self to the door. He stared at it for a moment, mentally running through all the possible things he could say. After a few seconds he just scoffed at himself. 

 

"Who is it?" He grumbled, opening the door while rubbing his eyes. And immediately regretted doing so. Because standing in front of him was Uchiha Sasuke himself, eyes bloodshot and a painful look on his face. 

 

_ What the hell? _ Was this some sort of genjutsu? 

 

**_*It’s real,”_ ** Kurama deadpanned. 

 

He didn't believe it. Not for a second. Sasuke, number one student in the Academy, the last Uchiha, was not standing in front of his door with a pillow in his hand. 

 

“Sasuke?” Naruto sputtered. 

 

"Can I stay here for the night?" Sasuke whispered as if he was afraid to ask.  His brown eyes bore into Naruto's blue ones, filled with trepidation. His words were hesitant, his hands trembling just the slightest bit. 

 

And surprisingly, Naruto understood that kind of pain. Knew it all too well, the feeling of being lonely. 

 

So he tipped the door further and let his teammate in, no questions asked. Sasuke walked in, surveying the small apartment with little interest. He was strangely... 

 

Vulnerable. 

 

It was as if he'd shed his mask of arrogance and confidence in just one night, and revealed someone completely different. It was equal parts scary and refreshing- thought Naruto cursed himself for thinking that. He was glad, at least. Sasuke trusted him enough to drop his facade, if only for one minute. 

 

"Your apartment is messy as hell," Sasuke noted, pointing to the scattered papers lying about and dirty laundry on the floor. 

 

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the sudden change in his tone, but decided not to say anything. 

 

"Well, I was just-" He gathered them up, concealing the files on Uzushiogakure and their forbidden sealing jutsus. He'd swiped them from the archive in the jutsu library that was off-limits to Genins. Turns out, a simple transformation into one of the jounin guards did the trick. 

 

"I was studying more about my clan." A half-truth. 

 

While Naruto did want to learn more about his clan, it was difficult to even come across a single file that mentioned the Uzumaki name. Uzushio, though, even harder. It was like searching for a needle in a haystack. The few papers he had gathered barely cared to mention the capabilities of his clan. 

 

Sasuke absently nodded, fiddling with his rumpled pillow with one hand. 

 

"You want some water?" Naruto asked, guiding him over to his bedroom. It was a bit more organized than the main room, thank kami. He switched a light on, pointing to the small closet nestled in the corner of the space. 

 

"There's an extra futon in there. I'll get some hot water and ramen." 

 

The Uchiha looked like he was ready to start drooling at the idea of food. Naruto smiled and turned to the kitchen. What could have happened that made Sasuke want to find sanctuary in Naruto's house, of all places? He just seemed so out of it.

 

"Kurama, what did you sense?" Naruto delved into the mindscape, wringing his hands in worry. 

 

**_*His chakra seems colder than usual.*_ ** He answered, lost in thought. 

 

Naruto jumped up to Kurama's shoulder blades, leaning his body against the Kyuubi's for warmth. "Like, scary cold? Does he wanna kill me?" 

 

**_*Idiot. No.*_ ** Kurama's voice rumbled softly. 

 

**_*Cold, as in sad. Depressed. Shocked. All of the above. There are many ways to interpret chakra, but for one thing, it's easily riled up by strong emotions.*_ **

 

Naruto processed that for a minute. Sasuke was a little out of character, but Naruto hadn't the faintest idea why. He could feel Kurama sigh at the thought. 

 

**_*Look underneath the underneath.*_** Was the last thing the bijuu said before slumping and immediately going back to sleep. 

 

"Hey!" Naruto jumped off of Kurama's shoulder just in time to avoid being squashed. He was already snoring loud enough for Naruto to clap his hands over his ears, glaring at the Kyuubi. He was obviously trying to point out something important if he went to extreme lengths just so that Naruto could solve this on his own. That sounded a lot similar to what an overbearing mother would do. 

 

Naruto stuck his tongue out at Kurama, knowing full well that he was too deep in sleep to bother noticing. 

 

_ Look underneath, the underneath. _ He had said. What the hell did that mean? 

 

The blond racked his head, but to no avail. Might as hell ask Sasuke himself. 

 

He returned to his room with two cups of steaming water, handing one to his friend. Sasuke was quiet as usual, but more solemnly so. His shoulders were hunched over, eyes drooping with exhaustion. 

 

"Hey, what happened?" Naruto asked softly. Sasuke grimaced at the question, and Naruto immediately backed up. 

 

"You don't have to tell me-" 

 

"A nightmare." Sasuke’s eyes dropped to the floor, lips thinned into a line. There was history there. Naruto knew about the massacre, but the details weren’t exactly as clear as he’d liked them to be. But seeing Sasuke so-- so  _ broken  _ by the memory, Naruto couldn’t help but echo that pain in empathy. Sasuke was quiet, yes, but never... Never openly distraught. He grieved in silence so often that it was hard to tell his good days from bad. The line blurred between apathy and an abundance of emotions. 

 

Reaching out to Sasuke, Naruto pulled him in an embrace It was awkward at first, seeing as how neither of them knew how to communicate in such an intimate way. Sasuke soon slumped against the blond's touch, and Naruto wondered how long it had been since someone comforted him. 

 

"You will be okay," He whispered, watching as Sasuke drew in a ragged breath. He was silent as Naruto rubbed gentle circles in his back. This was his way of mourning, Naruto realized with a heavy heart. Sasuke didn’t like to cry in front of people. Didn’t want to show weakness.    
  


And Naruto was okay with that. He understood the feeling with a passion. But if he could offer at least some sort of security to his teammate, he would do it without a second thought. 

 

___

  
  
  
  
  


When Sakura bought eight packets of dango and a surprise gift (more like a surprise party, but she knew better than to spoil the fun, ) to Naruto's house planning to surprise Sasuke, she did not expect to see Sasuke there. Not in the very least. So all she could do was stare at the two when Naruto answered the door, a sleepy Sasuke on his right. 

 

_ What the...?  _

 

She dropped the basket of sweets in shock. There was a moment of silence when all three genin flinched at the sound of dango hitting the floor with a  _ whap.  _ Sakura couldn’t have cared less. She blinked her eyes, thinking that it was a hallucination. 

 

" _ You-you _ ," She stammered, pointing at them. “Did you fight again-” 

 

"No, Sakura, we did not." Sasuke answered calmly, rubbing his eyelids. 

 

The pink-haired kunoichi bit back her retort, fuming silently as she tried to gauge the situation. What happened to the fierce rivalry they developed? How had Sasuke’s cold exterior melted so easily next to Naruto?    
  


Naruto yawned. “It was just a sleepover.”

 

A sleepover? Since when did Naruto and Sasuke have sleepovers? Granted, they grew closer after their first mission- Sakura included- and she wouldn’t put it past them to actually have a sleepover, but it was just so out of character. So  _ sudden.  _ Sakura opened her mouth to say something else, but closed it after observing them both a little longer. Sasuke had puffier eyes than usual, outlined by the thin but noticeable flush of red under them. As if he’d been crying all night. Naruto didn’t seem fazed, sporting the casual. 

 

“Wow.” Sakura picked up her basket while eyeing the two of them suspiciously. “So, can I come in, or…?” She gestured vaguely into Naruto’s apartment. 

 

The boy had to audacity to look confused, at least before he caught a whiff of the food. “Sakura-chan, you brought food!” Naruto exclaimed, tugging on Sasuke’s arm in delight. He opened the door further with sparkling eyes that could match Gai-sensei’s. Sakura sighed, but didn't object when the two boys pushed her through the doorway. 

 

“It’s a little bit messy, sorry.” Naruto laughed awkwardly, then proceeded to kick an old ramen-cup under his desk. Followed by the destruction of a paper house built by old tissue paper. 

 

“It’s like this all the time, Naruto.” Sakura moved to pick up the pieces of rubbish on his wooden floor, throwing a glare his way as she dumped it in the trash can. She winced as the object  _ clearly  _ hit something liquid in there, but decided to ignore the  _ hell  _ of whatever that was. 

  
Sasuke crossed his arms, jerking his chin towards the floor. “She’s right, you know.” He said blithely. Naruto returned with an eye-roll and stuck out his tongue good-naturedly.    
  


Sakura cleared her throat. “Anyone up for some dango?” She gingerly took out the candy (that were not mutilated) before offering them to her teammates. They still shone with the thin layer of sugar coating that she glazed on them, and there was a spark of pride in knowing that she was definitely improving on her dango. 

 

Naruto accepted it with a wide smile that magnificently displayed both his dimples. “Thanks, Sakura-chan!” 

 

The kunoichi approached Sasuke next, who was a mask of practiced calm- though there was a slight frown to his features. “Take it.” Sakura goaded. Sasuke looked hesitant, though he carefully plucked the stick from her hands. 

 

“Hm.” 

 

Sakura guided them over to Naruto’s table, setting the extra packets on the surface and dropping down in one of the chairs. Silence settled over them like them like fog. Out of the corner of Sakura’s eyes, she could see Sasuke eyeing the candy in his hands in disdain. Truth be told, Sasuke hated any kind of sweets. Sakura knew that fairly well. She and Naruto had a celebration in mind. 

 

Sakura winked at Naruto, a mischievous smile plastered on her face. He grinned and turned to the Uchiha, who was nibbling the edges of the dango out of politeness with a twisted look on his face. She stared at Sasuke for a while, pretending to be offended that he wasn’t gobbling down the snack. Naruto chewed even louder than usual. 

 

And then, they both started to laugh. Poor Sasuke stared at his teammates with a confused look on his face.    
  


Hiccuping with giggles, Sakura reaches into her basket once more. “Did- did you really think we were going to let you eat dangos? You hate them.” 

 

Naruto held back a choking sound, and practically sprinted for his fridge. He returned a fraction of a second later, a plate of homemade rice balls in his hands. 

 

“What-” Sasuke muttered, but Sakura shut him up immediately with her own plate of cherry tomatoes. His favorite. “The dangos are just for us since you have such horrible tastes.” 

 

Sasuke watched silently as his friends piled their food on the table, making a display that smiled up to him like rays of sunshine. Sakura studied his face. He seemed to be in shock, but there was nothing unpleasant about his surprise. Was he happy? Sad? 

 

“What did I miss?” A voice called from the window. Ah. That’d be their jounin sensei. Sakura whipped her head around just in time to see Kakashi leap from Naruto’s balcony to the trio with, arms full with gifts. Sasuke gazed at all three of them warily, hands clenched beneath the table. 

 

“I see you’re still late, Kaka-sensei!” Naruto jabbed a finger at him squinted eyes. 

 

The jounin shrugged and sat down next to Sakura. _ Are you ready? _ His eyes seemed to say. 

 

She nodded with vigor. 

 

“Sasuke,” Naruto started, eyes lit up like a million stars. There was a kind of happiness to him that radiated warmth, and Sakura returned it with a renewed kind of vigor, directing it at their teammate. 

 

“Happy birthday!” Sakura and Kakashi finished. 

 

___

 

Sasuke didn’t celebrate his birthday. At least, not after Itachi left. It was easier to throw himself into training, into forgetting, than taking time to appreciate something so trivial. Even while his family were alive, they didn’t always bring him presents. Birthdays weren’t a tradition that the Uchiha held stock in. Celebrations were for promotions, weddings and events which held importance. The birthday of a child was just that- a day of birth and a reminder of how old the child was. No one in the clan was celebrated without cause,  especially not for the paltry reason of making it another year in a cutthroat world.

 

Still, his family had always had small things. No parties, but-

 

His mother kissed him on the temple. His father smiled at him.  _ Itachi, though _ . Itachi made rice balls and tomatoes for Sasuke, showered him in brand-new kunai and other gifts. When he could, anyway. When he wasn’t too busy out on missions to care for his little brother. 

 

When the clan looked away long for affection to go unnoticed.

 

Sasuke didn’t fully grasp the importance the meaning of birthdays. It seemed frivolous to celebrate something as simple as birth, though that thought had obviously been hidden by the vague sense of jealousy that lingered whenever he watched another child’s parents throw a massive party. 

 

By now, Sasuke had been alone for so long that he had forgotten how it felt to have people  _ be there for him.  _ To have friends to celebrate his birthday and food to go along with it. And now,  _ well _ . 

 

Kakashi was sitting beside him with presents  _ for him _ , a real smile on his face that couldn’t be hidden- not even by his mask. Sakura brought him cherry tomatoes that he could barely resist, his hunger suddenly a jarring presence. Naruto made him onigiri rice balls. Not out of pity, not out of moral obligation. But because he  _ wanted to.  _

 

Sasuke used to live for revenge. His only purpose to kill Itachi and avenge his clan. That was it. His entire life goal, driven by hate. Even then, his life had not been his. He was merely a puppet in the grand scheme of things, fueled by years of trauma and loneliness. 

 

He was just an orphan child whose memories were filled with empty bedrooms and blood splattered on the walls. Sasuke thought he didn’t need pleasure or happiness in his life. The need for that had all been swept away the moment Itachi left him behind with nothing but cruel words and the corpses of his parents. 

 

But then… 

 

Then came Team seven. 

 

Their happiness was like sunshine, the only bright spot in Sasuke’s shithole life. Even Naruto, who screamed loud enough to deafen half of Konoha, became bearable as time passed. Became his  _ friend  _ as they spent missions together. Sakura, who used to be a crazed fangirl, grew to be one of his most trusted allies. 

 

They were there for him. They remembered his birthday. 

 

And looking at them now, a familiar emotion stirred in Sasuke. 

 

_ Family. _

 

The word sounded so foreign to his lips, so forgotten on his tongue that Sasuke struggled to remember what it meant. The idea of it was so  _ tempting _ , so utterly beautiful. It was an old word that was left unused for longer than it should have been. 

 

“Sa-Sasuke?” Naruto asked worriedly, wide blue eyes blinking up at him .

 

He couldn’t seem to remember when his lips started to tremble until tears were curling at the corners of his eyes and threatening to spill onto his cheeks. 

 

Sasuke never cried in front of people. It was a weakness to him, something enemies could easily take advantage of. He was surprised to find that it didn’t feel bad at all. It was almost comforting- he was surrounded by people who cared for him, after all. 

 

“Shut up, dobe.” Sasuke muttered, managing to smirk. He wiped his face with his sleeve and closed his eyes. 

 

“Thank you.” He whispered. 

 

He almost began to weep once more as his teammates swamped him in a group hug.    
  


Through the tears and ‘ _ I knew you weren’t that much of an asshole’  _ from Naruto, Sasuke hugged them back. Fiercely. 

 

_ I think I have something else to live for after all.  _

___

 

Naruto was up to something— Shikamaru was sure of that. After watching the blond creep around the Archive library several times and convincing himself that no,  _ he was not a stalker, just observan _ t, the Nara decided to find out what he was up to. 

 

Shikamaru crept along the edges of the building, hands in his pockets. The security around the library was surprisingly lax, as if the jounin guards didn’t realize that they were guarding tens of thousands of information worth more than they were.  Or perhaps, they weren’t. Information was sacred— and false information, easily hiding the truth, seemed just like the true Shinobi tactic. Information, and false information, could make or break wars, so of course a village would jealously guard their secrets. It seemed only logical to do so. 

 

_ So maybe this isn’t the result archives… _

 

He tucked the errant observation away in his mind for later thought and turned back to the task at hand.

 

Sighing, he ducked under the asleep shinobi and slipped through the front gates unnoticed. It didn’t take too long for him to find Naruto among the seemingly endless rows of books. The library spanned for rows forward, but out of the unassuming and plain colors of brown and black, it was quite easy to spot the horrendous shade of  _ “ _ kill me orange” that was Naruto’s favorite color. 

 

Naruto was hunched over a pile of books stacked on top of each other, sifting through them hurriedly. Since when did he read? Because the last time Shikamaru checked, Naruto was not a fan of literature. Nor did he even bother to step a foot into the library to do anything else other than pull pranks. Something else was in play here. 

 

Naruto flipped through the pages again, and mumbled something that Shikamaru couldn’t hear.  _ What was he doing?  _ Shikamaru tried to get a good look at the titles and scrolls Naruto was holding, but being three shelves away from him didn’t help his vision much. All he could make out were the district colors of red inscribed onto every book. 

 

What a pain. Why did Shikamaru even follow him all the way to the library? He could’ve been watching the clouds roll through the skies instead, or  _ sleeping…  _

 

“Shika, you aren’t gonna rat me out, right?” Naruto peered up from his books, a guilty expression on his face. 

 

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes. He had been sure to mask his chakra and hide his trail as soon as he came into the room, but for Naruto to sense it so quickly… The Nara smoothed his expressions into a bored frown and walked over to the blond. Naruto wasn’t a sensory ninja, nor did he posses any dojutsu that allowed him expanded sight. 

 

“Never knew you were one for reading,” Shikamaru dodged the question with ease. He peered over Naruto’s shoulder best he could. “Anything interesting in there?” 

 

Naruto blanched and instantly swept the scrolls and books from Shikamaru’s view, and lowered his eyes. “Just some… clan stuff.” 

 

Shikamaru recited the blond’s name in his mind. Naruto… Uzumaki, huh. He had been told that the class dead-last was an orphan, but apparently that wasn’t exactly the case. He couldn’t quite make sense of the name Uzumaki, though. Maybe it was one of the smaller clans in the Fire Nation? No… It sounded familiar. 

 

But clan files wouldn’t be kept in the Archives Library. Those were public to the citizens of Konoha, and were accessed by lower-ranked nin all the time.

 

This entire situation was troublesome. Why was he so curious? 

 

Shikamaru sat down- more like dropped to the floor,  _ god _ he was tired- and pulled a random book from the shelves. He skimmed through the chapters lazily, eyes dancing across the pages. 

 

He thought solemnly of all the times he watched Naruto question others about his parents, how his eyes lingered on the families that the academy students accompanied. People always responded harshly and criticized him for ever wanting such a thing- but Naruto was just a child. Just like Shikamaru, just like Ino, just like Choji and every other student that graduated from the academy. 

 

If he truly found something about his own family, then maybe Shikamaru would be able to make up for all the times he was nothing but another bystander. 

 

“Shika? What are you doing?” Naruto questioned.    
  


“Can’t you see?” Shikamaru sighed heavily, though he sported a grin on his normally bored features. “I’m going to help you.” 

  
  



	2. For Those Who Love, Time is an Eternity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time is too slow for those who wait, too swift for those who fear, too long for those who grieve, too short for those who rejoice, but for those who love, time is an eternity. 
> 
> ___
> 
> now that the cheesy quotes are out of the way lol here's chap 2 sorry I took so long I decided to binge what Naruto again hahaah ;_; - ALSO, WHY IS ARCHIVE's RICH TEXT HTML WHATEVER SO HARD TO MANAGE WHY DO ALL THE SPACES LOOK SO BIG???????? MOOKY AND I WROTE 1000+ WORDS WHY DOES IT LOOK LIKE BARELY 50 wtf -Marigold
> 
>  
> 
> Honestly this chapter was so much fun. I love drunk jounin. I’m currently in hospital so many thanks to Mari for doing a lot to this <3 love you guys all! -Mooky

 

  _The Old Legends say that Uzushio was a gift from the sage of six paths himself. It’s a land rich with pure chakra and ancient power that blessed the Uzumaki clan for so long it became embedded into their blood and spirits. Maybe the rumors are true, maybe they’re just another figment of some fool’s imagination. But I’ve seen the island. I’ve met the people._

_Maybe they’re not that far from the stories._

_The Uzumaki clan- they’re a sight to behold. Red hair varying from crimson to the darkest shade of blood. Extremely talented at fuuinjutsu, and every one of them have Chakra reserves like a black hole of energy. Feisty, too. No wonder Iwagakure and Kirigakure are so afraid of Uzushio. They’re probably the only village that can go head-to-head with two elemental nations and still come back for another round._

_The harvest is especially good this year. It seems that Konohagakure’s trade channels are back open and the whirlpools have calmed enough to allow ships through. I tagged along with a few fishermen in the morning, curious to see how their daily lives went. I was astonished. The Uzumaki call to the sea like a bird to flight. Sometimes they don’t even need hand signs- they just seem to dance to the waves, the wind, everything around them as if it were the most natural thing in the world._

_From the window of my inn, Uzushio glows with the sunset across the water, and the fountains seem to run with gold. It’s like a wonderland of beauty- especially during springtime. I’ll miss this village._

_____

 

“I’m a jin- jinchuriki.” Naruto stuttered. His face bowed low, hesitant to look Shikamaru in the eye.  

 

“Oh?” Shikamaru mused, face buried in stacks of journals and books. He already knew of Naruto’s status, given that his father was the head of the intelligence division. And he’s a Nara, after all. It wasn’t that hard to connect the dots between the villagers that disapproved of the blonde, the Anbu always lingering after him, and the careful eye of the jounin that interacted with him.

The Hokage may have wanted to keep the village’s jinchuriki a secret, but obviously, that hadn’t worked in his favor.

Shikamaru paused from reading. “I know.”  

“You what?” Naruto’s jaw dropped in surprise. “ _How do you know_?”

“You aren’t exactly subtle.” Shikamaru coughed into his fist, because that was easier to say than to tell Naruto that it was because of everyone’s unease around him. Shikamaru watched Naruto as a series of emotions crossed his face in a whirlwind of shock, sadness, and terror.

The blond shuffled his feet around the library chair. “You don’t mind?” He asked all-too quietly.

A sudden, unexpected rage curled around Shikamaru’s gut. It was the same feeling of helplessness when he caught Ino frowning at her reflection in the mirror, or when Choji came home with a silent voice and swore he’d never eat again. The cruel, painful realization of all the things he had been unable to _change._

He leveled Naruto with what he hoped looked nonchalant, and shrugged. “You’re the same old idiot to me.” He said, though there was promise in the words.

And he watched with satisfaction as Naruto broke out into a smile brighter than the sun.

“I’m also best friends with the Kyuubi.”

 

“You’re the fucking what, now?”

___

 

Kakashi eyed the sake cup in front of him, and wondered if coming to the monthly ‘jounin lounge’ was a huge mistake. Judging from the drunken shouting across the bar, though? Definitely. He normally didn’t accept the invitations that the other jounins offered him, but Gai had _insisted._ Meaning he dragged Kakashi by the ankles and practically forced him on a chair.

 

“Kakashi!” An overly-bright voice called. Well, fuck. Kakashi pretended to not hear Gai. Instead, he pulled out his trusty _Icha Icha Tactics_ and blatantly began to read porn in front of the entire bar.

 

He watched with amusement out of the corner of his eye as Gai choked on his drink at the appearance of the book. “Kakashi! You mustn't read such vulgar stories!”  
  
Asuma, Kurenai, Genma, Raidou, and Ebisu all sighed in unison.

“Well, at least this is one of the few times I’ll be able to relax before work gets me again.” Hayate rolled his eyes.

Kurenai sipped from her sake and raised one eyebrow in surprise. “Are you being assigned teams this month?”

 

“I wish.” Hayate muttered before he added, “I’m proctoring for the Chunin exams.”

 

 _Chunin exams, huh?_ Kakashi mused. He was just thinking about it. It was barely six months away, but the Hokage had already begun planning for the event. It’ll be the first time since the third war that Konoha’s hosting it- at least for the other nations.

 

“That bad, Hayate?” Asuma grumbled. He poured more alcohol into his own cup, then tipped it to his lips.

 

Hayate pinched the bridge of his nose. “Suna, Ame, and Taki will all be attending.”

 

“Good luck,” Genma muttered before passing out. Raidou clicked his tongue in disappointment at his friend.

 

Three other hidden villages? That would definitely be a first. Considering that all three of them have fought with Konoha at least once just in the past few decades, it was no wonder that the elites of Konoha were worried. 

Kakashi hummed as he listened with a vague detachment, the information processing and storing itself as he busied himself with the smutty literature. Tsunako was such a wanton woman in the book and Kakashi had always considered tactics his favorite volume of the series, precisely for that reason.

 

“Maa, it won’t be that bad. Just think— we’ll have so many opportunities to drink away our sorrows as our small assassins-in-training fight to become Chunin.”

 

“You’re entering your team into the exams this year?” Kurenai asked. “But I thought your team-”

 

“-Was the dead last, fangirl, and mentally unstable Uchiha?” Kakashi finished with fondness. “Not anymore.”

 

“I’m confident in their skills as a team.”

 

Asuma whistled at the statement. “Damn. What’d you do?” He pushed a full glass to Kakashi, who dunked the alcohol down with such speed the other jounin barely glimpsed his face.

 

“I have no idea.”

 

Hayate huffed a laugh. “Just make sure your kids don’t destroy the village.”

 

“Noted.”

 

Raidou refilled everyone’s bottles, taking care to put in a second cup for Hayate- who he gave a sympathetic smile to.

 

“Since Kakashi will be entering his team, I shall as well!” Gai climbed up on his barstool, despite the protested cries of the bartender and jounin. “The power of youth lies in our genin!” He cried with conviction.

 

Kurenai looked away from the green monster nonchalantly. “I guess I will too.”

 

“Amen to that.” Asuma said, raising his cup.

 

Hayate looked like he would rather jump out of a window than proctor for their genin, but he raised his sake nonetheless.

 

Kakashi let himself smile. He had been hesitant to form friendships within the circles of the jonin rank, but for the first time in 12 years, it felt like he fit among them. “To our little monster genins.”

 

“Cheers!”

 

___

 

“Kurama?” Asked Naruto. He played with bits of grass in his mindscape, now a flourishing plain overlooking a city showered in gold-red roof tiles rather than a murky sewer. He found that he could change its appearance whenever he wanted, if only he had an idea of what it could be. So Naruto imagined Uzushio- at least from what he could recognize in a few drawings and journals.

 

A comfortable breeze blew past him, carrying wayward cherry blossoms into the sea. Naruto had never been to the ocean, so he had no idea what it felt like to be under the gentle sun, but at least he could experience it through the mindscape.  But even a mindscape could not incite a roaring breeze, fresh with the flavor of salt and the tang of seaweed on the hot rocks by the village— could not capture the sheer splendor of a world where Naruto _belonged_ , intimately and undeniably.

 

The Kyuubi lifted its head in response. One red eye blinked slowly. “Kit?”

 

Naruto bit the bottom of his lip. “Can you show me my parent's chakra impressions?”

 

The request had been hovering in the peripheries of his mind, a burning desire awakened by Kurama’s information, his stories of what he knew of their deaths and he wanted to _know._ But he was afraid, avoiding the possibility of interacting with impressions of people who created him and who left him alone, even if they hadn’t meant to. Naruto had never had a family of his own until Team 7, never felt too close to anyone. Hearing that his parents loved him to their last breath, protected him and _believed_ in him-

 

It hurt. It hurt to think about that shred of light in all his years of loneliness, the reminder of the life he could have lived. All the times he came home to an empty apartment, drank expired milk because he wasn’t taught to do better, all the while acting like an eccentric brat just to hide the fact that he _wasn’t okay_ . And to even _think_ that there was a possibility that he could have been happy with his mother and father…

 

_Or the possibility that they wouldn’t be, that his deepest and darkest terrors were true— that no one could love him._

 

He had to meet them. Even if it was through a realm where time didn’t exist, even if they couldn’t ever eat ramen together, or that they couldn’t ever celebrate his birthday. Besides, he could ask them all the questions even a mystical tailed beast couldn’t.

 

He couldn’t wait anymore. Couldn’t handle the one chance dangling in front of him like bait.

 

Just seeing them would be enough. _It had to be._

 

Kurama tilted his head, an unreadable expression on his face. “You’re sure?”

 

Naruto steadied his rapidly-beating heart, and nodded.

 

With a flick of his tail, Kurama changed the mindscape. He disappeared from view as colors assaulted Naruto’s vision.

 

A sense of peace settled over him, slow and calm. When Naruto opened his eyes again, he was standing in a open void. It was a strange combination of white and yellow, and he realized with that he was actually standing on nothing. The floor was just... kinda _there._ Naruto facepalmed with a groan of frustration. He could practically feel his brain light itself on fire just by trying to figure out the logic of the place.

 

“Naruto.” A feminine voice behind him called. His breath caught his throat. He wanted to turn around so badly, but his body wouldn’t _move_ , wouldn’t dare to face his mother. How could he? She was right there- real and solid in this world. His father was there too, judging from the presence of powerful chakra. He didn’t realize that he was shaking until two hands settled on his shoulder.

 

They were warm and calloused, but so very, very real.

“You can look, y’know.” There was a hint of amusement laced in Kushina’s light timbre.

  
“We’ve been waiting a while, too.” Minato stepped around and kneeled in front of him. His eyes were just as bright blue as Naruto’s, with hair shining a brilliant gold in the pale light of the spiritual realm. He looked as young as the picture that hung in the hokage’s room. He smiled, though there was a trace of sadness. Naruto hesitantly turned his head.

 

A strand of red hair entered his vision, then another. Kushina’s crimson hair dangled in front of her like a waterfall of burning fire. They were just as long and luxurious as the travelers in Uzushio loved to talk about, and Naruto couldn’t help but be a bit jealous of the way it fell down to her knees. Her indigo blue eyes stared down at him.

 

_This was enough. It had to be._

 

Naruto breathed in the delicate aroma of strawberries and chocolate, somehow familiar and foreign all at once. He swallowed heavily and desperately tried to ignore the burning pain in his heart.

 

“Hey! Mom, dad.” Naruto plastered on a happy face, urging his lips to smile until they hurt. “Nice to meet you!” He said. There was something like _longing_ clawing at his lungs, overtaking his body until Naruto was clenching his hands together to keep from crying. _I’m so selfish,_ he thought. _To want more than just this._

 

“I held you in my arms for five minutes,” Minato said quietly.

 

Naruto froze at the words.

 

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t there for you. Did someone take care of you? Do you have friends?” He asked with worried eyes. Naruto took a deep breath- then some. His dad and Mom didn’t know. Of course they didn’t. They were dead. There were some people who took care of him, but they came and went and usually were ANBU that were hired by Hiruzen. The number of people who were willing to talk to Naruto before the Academy could be counted on one hand. Of course his father would assume that being the son of the Yondaime Hokage would grant Naruto some sort of salvation, but-

 

Naruto bit back the words he wanted so desperately to say. _Two years ago, I didn’t even know your names. Two years ago, I wasn’t even sure that you existed. Two years ago, the ‘monster’ in my head had to teach me about myself because no one else was willing to._

 

“I’ve had it rough, but I have tons of friends now.” He forced himself to say.

 

The tension disappeared from his mother’s shoulders, and she and pulled Naruto into a hug. His arms stiffened at the contact immediately, but he forced himself to relax out of habit. “I’m sorry, too.” She murmured. “My biggest regret is that I didn’t get to see you grow,“ She cradled him closer to her chest as if he was the only thing keeping her from drifting away.

 

“That I couldn’t shower you with love.” She cried, the last word was nothing more than a choked sob- and Naruto felt his father’s arms wrap themselves around them in a steady embrace. And just like that, Naruto’s facade crumbled away like ashes falling to the ground. Uncontrollable tears poured from his eyes, emotions that were long overdue from being hidden away for so long. Kushina tilted her head slightly, pressing a soft kiss on Naruto’s forehead. 

And Naruto thought that, just maybe, he wouldn’t need an eternity to spend with his parents. Just now, just in the moment- that was enough. His parents somehow managed to fill a hole in his conscience that even the best of friends and teachers could ever replace, something _gentle_ and _comforting_ brushing over his usually rough exterior.

 

He pulled away first, a real smile spreading over his face and replacing his wet cheeks and puffy eyes.

 

“I have so many things to ask you!” He bounced on his toes with excitement despite the somber mood, realizing for the first time the possibilities of what he could ask. _How was Uzushio really created? How did dad master the rasengan? Do you think I would be able to use Mama’s chakra chains?_

 

Instead, the first sentence that came out of his mouth was, “How did you two fall in love?”

 

Kushina snorted with delight while Minato’s face turned as red as her hair.

 

___

 

The teahouse was as busier than usual, with customers flowing quicker than Sakura thought possible. It was the afternoon, though, so she didn’t really know what else to expect from the restaurant that was second only to the Akimichi barbeque. Her mother bustled around the traditional Japanese-styled rooms with plates of mouth-watering desserts and matcha tea, greeting newcomers with the ease of a decade’s worth of practiced patience. Sakura, of course, stayed out of her parent’s way in the apartment above the teahouse.

 

She sharpened kunai after another, throwing them haphazardly into a bin of weapons beside her bed. Out of the academy, she was the only one with parents who were both civilians with no ninja training in her lineage whatsoever. And she’d grown up alongside famous clans and coveted bloodlines, plus the fact Sakura wasn’t particularly talented at ninjutsu, taijutsu, or genjutsu. Her chakra control was definitely above average, but it didn’t amount to much.

 

How would she ever hope to become a powerful kunoichi?

 

Sakura sighed through her teeth. Maybe she could take up medical ninjutsu?

 

“Sakura!” Her mother called from downstairs. Sakura set down her knife and ran down the stairs. “Yes?” She answered. She peered inside different dining stalls, trying her best to not disturb the customers. Her mother stood in front of a table, smiling brightly at her.

 

“Yes?” Sakura repeated, suspicion rising as the two people behind the chairs grinned up at her. “You’re a kunoichi fresh out of the academy, right?” A woman wearing jounin-clothes asked. Her purple hair draped over her shoulders, as dark as a plum.

 

“I’m Yugao Uzuki, and this is Hayate Gekko.” She pointed to the man sitting across from her. Hayate had a sheepish look on his face as he studied Sakura. “You wouldn’t be Hatake’s student, would you?” He asked, one eyebrow raised in curiosity.

 

Sakura nodded absently, and watched with amusement as Hayate cursed colorfully under his breath. Maybe he was a friend of Kakashi-sensei’s?

 

Her mother beamed with pride. “Uzuki-san and Gekko-san wanted to meet you, Sakura.”

 

Sakura felt her face flush. Kakashi-sensei was usually the only jounin she had ever interacted with, so hearing that- not one- but _two_ seasoned jounins wanted to meet her was a bit exciting. She looked over the two again, eyeing the long black-clothed item strapped over their shoulders.  “If you don’t mind me asking, what do you specialize in?”

 

Yugao smiled at the question, and unwrapped the cloth to reveal a silver katana. “Kenjutsu.” She said, and Hayate nodded and pointed to his own.

 

“Do  you like it?” Yugao turned the blade over in her hands and ran a finger along the blunt edge. It was simple, yet elegant. Just a black handle paired with iron- and yet, Sakura found something immensely beautiful in the weapon. She traced the smooth curve of the metal, admiring the way light reflected across the glossy surface.

 

She couldn’t hold back the evil grin that spread across her face.

 

“You’re creating _monsters,_ Yugao,” Hayate muttered. “ _Monsters.”_

 

Yugao dutifully ignored him. “Tell me, why did you become a kunoichi?” She asked as she carefully handed Sakura her katana.

 

Sakura thought of all her friends, her teammates, her teacher, and her parents. The people closest to her, who loved her just as she loved them back. “To protect my precious people.” Sakura answered with an unwavering voice of steel. She wouldn’t turn her back on shinobi life now, she vowed. _To protect._ That was her ninja way.

 

“When are you free to train?”

 

___

 

Waking up to an empty apartment was quite possibly the most heart-shattering thing Naruto had to do. His house was too big, too much space for one person to possibly use. _Empty chairs and empty tables and forgotten rooms._ The hallways spread out before him like a never-ending tunnel of darkness.

 

It was just him and the silence.

 

No time had passed while he was in his mindspace- not even a second. It was still in the late afternoons, and the sun had mellowed to nothing more than a distant shine. The last lingering touches from his mother and father clung to Naruto’s mind like frost, making him shiver. _How sweet it was to feel a parent’s love,_ he thought.

 

He hadn’t ever thought of how it was missing from his life- not really. He’d tried to chase away the physical aspect of loneliness for so long that he’d never really thought of how _love_ changed it. He’s not sure what it was, all truth be told. He knew _of_ it, he’s _seen_ it but the _feeling-_ that all-encompassing affection directed onto him, bright and whole and _accepting_ , well-

Naruto would never forget those brief moments.

 

Nor was he likely to forget how sharp the pain of loss was, now that he truly knew what it was that he had been missing.

 

His parents had answered all his questions, at least. Kushina told him of Uzushio’s legends and stories that Shikamaru would kill for. _Look underneath the underneath,_ she had said with a mysterious smile. Minato taught Naruto the basics of the rasengan- and put absolute faith in his ability to complete it. He’s not sure what a rubber ball and a few balloons have to do with it, but his dad was the _Hokage._ Even if he said the only way to learn it is to be eaten by a giant tiger, Naruto was willing to try.

 

_I believe in you._

 

_I love you._

 

Were the words that they shared with him; bittersweet and saudade. The happiness didn’t fade, even after the last pieces of their chakra crumbled away into nothingness, forever lost from the world. It was strange how Naruto spent the last ten years of his life looking for love and never received any, while the love he gained in a single moment would last him a lifetime- for the boy who had nothing.

 

* _Love that remains even after it’s gone_ .* Kurama murmured, seemingly lost in thought while his chakra curled around Naruto, radiating warmth. * _You still have me_.* He assured.

 

Naruto let a small smile curve his lips.

 

A pause, then; * _And the Idiots at your door.*_

 

“Thanks, Kurama-nii!” He cheered in return.

 

 _*Brat.*_ The bijuu huffed with fondness.

 

Naruto rubbed at his eyes and gathered up his heart. The ‘idiots at the door’ probably meant his teammates. He unlocked his door and a gust of wind blew in, along with Sakura and Sasuke.

 

“I brought offerings for your bottomless stomach.” Sakura lifted up a bag of frozen desserts. “Do you have an oven?”

 

___

 

“I’ve decided,” Sakura announced to her teammates as she paced the length of Naruto’s kitchen. “I’m going to be a kenjutsu master.”

 

“Ken-ken what, now?” Naruto stuttered, eyes wide. He watched Sakura stomp her way from his fridge back to his dining table. “You’re going to dent my floor if you move any more.”

 

Sasuke grunted helpfully. “Kenjutsu is basically fighting with a sword.”

 

Naruto’s eyebrows lifted in surprise. “Sakura-chan! That’s awesome!”  

 

“Thanks.” She whispered, a bit embarrassed. The prospect of wielding a katana was already too appealing. She would get a golden blade with black velvet hilt- with a _dragon_ as its insignia-

 

“Sakura-chan, your eyes are sparkling.”

 

Sasuke huffed. “She just invented a new dojutsu.”

 

Leaning against the oven, Sakura smiled innocently. “It would be such a shame if all the desserts burned.”

 

They shut up.

 

Still, the giddiness wouldn’t dull. Sakura had just found her _shinobi specialty._ That was a feat in itself! She would carve her path with unyielding faith and the might of a thousand suns, and-

 

-She was beginning to sound like Maito Gai and Rock Lee, and that was _not_ a good thing.

 

The next thing she knew, she’d be clad in all green spandex and- she felt a full body shudder rock through her- _bright orange accessories._ Even in her imagination, orange still clashed so horrendously with pink. _Have you ever seen those shades together- just. No._

 

A soft ring from the oven timer shook her from her thoughts. “A-ha!”

 

Sakura slowly pulled back the door with gloved hands to reveal dozens upon dozens of home-made desserts. Golden-brown butter cookies, Matcha swiss rolls, sakuramochi, taiyaki, and other enchanting delicacies sat atop a metal pan. The smell permeating through the air was absolutely divine. Even Sasuke’s eyes widened a fraction as he stared at the food.

 

Sakura felt a surge of pride at the display. Desserts were her specialty, even as the daughter of a teahouse owner.

 

“Hm.” He muttered, which was obviously Uchiha speak for, “Wow Sakura, this looks delicious!”  
  
Scrambling up from his chair, Naruto leapt for the platter.  
  
“Wait!” Sakura exclaimed as she lifted it an inch above his reach. “It’s still hot.”

 

“But- but Sakura- _chan_ ,” He pleaded, puppy eyes staring up at her. “Just one.”

 

“Fine. Don’t come crying to me when you burn your tongue off.” She let Naruto pluck a cookie off the side, and was stunned when he practically _inhaled_ it. “It’s amazing!” He cried.

 

_Oh, what the hell._

 

Sakura cringed. Apparently he was immune to heat as well. “I’ll go prepare the tea,” She set the sweets down on a table. “While you eat…” The platter was already half-empty.

 

“Everything, it seems.”

 

Naruto gave her a bright, cookie-covered grin. “You should teach me how to make these!”

 

It was Sasuke’s turn to cringe.

 

“You want to learn how to bake?”

 

“Well, yeah,” Naruto stuffed down another three taiyakis and didn’t even bother chewing.

 

“Living alone means having to learn at least the basics.” He reasoned.

 

Sakura’s clenched her hands and made a mental note to always bring food to her best friend’s house when she visited. “I guess I can teach you a bit. It’s not that bad once you get the hang of it.” She settled into a pillow beside the table.

 

Sasuke closed his eyes. “I have a feeling Naruto’s house is going to suffer some burns.” Sakura nodded in agreement.

  
“My cute little genin!” Kakashi chirped as he jumped through Naruto’s unlocked balcony, a halfway unwrapped katana in his hands. Naruto choked on his food.

 

 _“Why does he get entrances like this?”_ He jabbed a chopstick angrily in their jounin-teacher’s direction.

 

“A little bird told me that Sakura wanted to become a kenjutsu master?” Kakashi asked, and stripped off the dark linen covering the blade.

 

Sakura screeched with happiness.

 

___

 

A flash of silver hair and three silhouettes passed by Iruka’s open window like a blur of wind. The papers in his hands flew, leaves dancing in the night.

 

“Hey!” Iruka warned as he climbed up to the balcony. He grappled at them, attempting to put the test sheets back together. “Watch it-”

 

“Sorry, Iruka-sensei!” A cheery voice called and Iruka’s anger vanished as quickly as it had come. _Was that Naruto? What the hell was he doing out at midnight?_ Leaning his head out of the rails, he forced his eyes to focus in the dark. “What are you doing?”

 

“Ah, Umino-san,” Kakashi landed gently on the roof across from Iruka’s house, a genin tucked under each arm and Naruto hanging off his neck. “We’re just training. Sorry to bother you.”

 

“Ah- oh.” Needless to say, Iruka was very, very, confused. It was nearly midnight. Who the hell thought that it would be a good idea to take a team of poor teenagers and force them to train out at _11 pm?_

 

Kakashi had, obviously.

 

Iruka sighed through his teeth.

  
“You can come along if you’re worried for our well-being.” A feminine voice suggested sarcastically and wow, was that Sakura? She tilted her head, a whimsical smile on her face as she waved a - _fucking katana_ \- around her waist. _It was almost taller than she was!_

 

“Hn.” Sasuke glared up at Kakashi. The jounin only winked down at him. “It won’t be that bad.”

 

Iruka pulled on his chunin vest. “I’m going.”

 

___

 


	3. In The Dew of Little Things, Hearts Find The Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sakura is a steel-hound, Naruto is an endless vacuum on taiyaki setting and Sasuke honestly wonders what deity he wronged to get stuck with these idiotic, beautiful morons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, we're back for Round Three!!!! Updating is a bit hard when one author is an adult with responsibilities and work while the other one is a 14-year-old. If you can guess which one is which I will actually give you a cookie come on whoever guesses right first gets a shoutout I am literally this petty -Mari 
> 
> Ps. Do you guys want short chapters but faster updates or long chapters and slower updates?? -Mari
> 
> Hey hey! Thank you for being so understanding when I was ill and apologies for how long this chapter took to come out! I was very glad to hear everyone's well-wishes for my recovery and I'm definitely feeling better now! We're having so much fun writing this, and it's honestly such a blast to hear how much you all love this fic! Let us know your favourite scene so far, and your opinion on characterisation! -Mook

Waking up in the middle of the night to a crazed man screaming, _ “Child development, Kakashi!” _ Was the last thing on Ino’s bucket list. If it was there at all, she hadn’t gotten around to categorizing it yet.

 

She rolled over, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and groaning at the clock on her bedside table cheerily displaying ‘11:49pm’, complete with a waving flower. Sakura had bought the darn thing for when they were six, and she’d never had the courage to part from it. It was gaudy and childish— but it was hers, and it was from Sakura-chan.  She rolled back over with a huff, letting her eyes slip shut as they grew heavy once again. 

 

It was far too late (and early) to even consider thinking through that tangled mess of a friendship.

 

She grumbled as yet another chorus of complaining and shouting began anew, echoing through the open window above her head. There was something else mixed in with all the noises, too- perhaps metal scraping against different surfaces.  _ So goddamn annoying!  _ Ino thought. The Yamanaka clan district was close to a few training fields, but most of them were often unused. Maybe that was why whoever was out training a genin team at night decided to pick that arena of all the places, since it was the perfect place of unobtrusive and secretive training.

 

_ Wait _ . 

Ino’s eyes shot open.  _ Genin team.  _ The academy class already filed in new students, but none of them had graduated yet. Which meant that it was either one of the few teams that had passed from her year, or just a bunch of rowdy kids with pointy objects. 

 

A team from her class… 

 

Which one could it be? 

 

It obviously wasn’t hers, since Shikamaru was beyond lazy and Choji wouldn't even be able to wake up. If anyone, it might be team nine doing night-time tracking training? 

Ino slipped from her covers and tiptoed to her window. Barely any light shone through the white curtains as she pulled them apart a fraction and squinted. It took second for her eyes to focus on the blurs of color, but when she did, Ino went slack-jawed. 

 

That was  _ Sakura  _ with a katana in her hands while her teammates sparred beside her. Her jounin sensei- that had to be Hatake Kakashi, with hair that distinctive- watched carefully as Sakura guided the silver blade side to side, moving with all the grace of a kunoichi. It was rough, unpolished but it was  _ there.  _  She seemed to fumble a bit, but considering that the weapon looked like it weighed half her body weight- it was probably a good thing. 

 

_ She had overtaken Ino again, and she hadn’t even noticed. _

 

_ No.  _ The thing that surprised Ino the most was that Sakura didn’t even look at Sasuke. Not one once, no lingering glances or soft smiles. She barely even breathed in his direction, in all the time that Ino watched them train. 

 

Where did the banshee-fangirl that fawned endlessly for the class heartthrob go? Where was the Sakura that Ino knew all too well, the one she had helped  _ grow _ ? The Sakura that was willing to throw away four years of friendship for just one boy? Ino couldn’t see any of the brazen girl she’d known growing up, so focused on her imaginary target— so calm and precise that Ino wanted to laugh. 

 

Here she was, waiting for the days to pass while her rival was training her ass off in the middle of the night. 

 

_ That,  _ Ino thought with chagrin,  _ will have to change.  _

 

“I hope you get fired!” The ‘crazed man’ screamed again and-

 

What was Iruka-sensei doing out there? 

 

_ I will not be left behind. _

 

_ Not this time, Sakura. _

 

___

 

Kakashi watched as Iruka gnawed anxiously at his bottom lip as Team 7 sparred against each other with kankaku seals, soft laughs and hooting calls relaying near misses and the subtle huffs as light hits landed.

 

“Worried?” Kakashi asked, words laced with amusement. That was perhaps the hundredth time he taunted Iruka for being overly-protective, which was rather hypocritical of him truth be told. Iruka shot him a dark look. “You know Kankaku seals are Chunin level training methods, Hatake-san. They have no business using these yet, there are  _ reasons  _ they’re restricted to promoted shinobi.” 

 

Indeed they were. kankaku seals were originally made to bind an enemy shinobi’s senses so that they couldn’t rely on them, but could also be used for developing someone’s weaker abilities. Sakura sealed her ears, Naruto sealed his voice, and Sasuke sealed his eyes. 

 

_ Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil.  _

 

“They can handle it. Besides, it’s good practice for fuuinjutsu.” 

 

Iruka said nothing, though his furrowed brow loosened the longer he watched them.

 

Kakashi was an anbu for most of life, though, so his lack of understanding how to actually take care of kids could be excused. Iruka was a well-known worrier- it was how he showed affection and though he’d carry the truth of it to his grave, it was the only real way he knew _how_ to show it. Genma could tell you, from firsthand experience, that Iruka couldn’t show it any other way, not without blubbering like a fool and generally making a nuisance of himself.

 

He was a teacher, one who had once soaked his hands in blood and he knew how tough those stains sat in the skin. He taught children to lie, taught children how to arrange flowers one moment and how best to eviscerate a man the next. He existed in a state of moral flux and change, teaching children to kill and telling them it would be okay. That was the price of that all shinobi had to pay in order to live in the ninja world. 

 

Iruka wanted the three to survive. He wanted them all to enjoy their lives and that was the crux of it. Not all of them would survive. They were  _ children  _ when he first saw them, bright eyed and happy and  _ innocent _ to the nth degree and Iruka ached for the children they were. 

 

The children they  _ had  _ been. 

 

Because they weren’t, not anymore. A genin was a soldier and a child couldn’t exist in the same vessel. 

 

“They are growing up, aren’t they?”

 

Kakashi’s gaze flicked to him, and Iruka can only keep tracking the hesitant but growing trust between the soldiers in front of him. There was something calculating in that one-eyed gaze, something old and heavy. 

 

Kakashi hummed in agreement. A heartbeat passed, then some. “Alright!” He called to the three genin. “Come here.” 

  
“What did you learn today?” 

 

Naruto undid his teammate’s seals with a grin. “We learned that fighting in the dark is actually very useful!”

 

“Kankaku seals improve non-dominant senses.” Sasuke added. 

 

“And I,” Sakura hefted up her katana in the air. “-learned how to use a katana!” 

 

Kakashi didn’t even bother hiding the pride and happiness on his face. ‘ _ Would you look at that, maybe he is a good teacher after all,’  _ Iruka thought with dripping sarcasm. 

 

Having a genin team really had changed him, though. Half-a-year ago Kakashi was a sulking, silent man who barely bothered to smile. But now….

 

Iruka wanted to remember every bit of his joy- the very joy that reflected his own. 

 

“You’ve earned a break. Take some time off tomorrow, and don’t bother me.” Kakashi said with a grin. “Try not to murder anyone.” He paused for a moment, appearing to ponder something for a brief second. “Well, at least not anyone who doesn’t deserve it.”

 

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura all looked at one another with mischief dancing in their eyes. They scampered away as soon as Kakashi looked in the other direction, nothing but whispered goodbyes to Iruka as to hint to their disappearance. 

 

The silver-haired jounin turned to Iruka as soon as they were out of earshot. “How about a midnight snack?” He asked. 

 

Iruka  _ desperately _ hoped that the faint warmth creeping up behind his ears was just from the autumn breeze. 

 

Judging from the knowing smirk dancing across Kakashi’s face, Iruka’s hopes were in vain.

 

___

 

Two years ago, Kurama forged an unbreakable bond with his Jinchuriki. But twelve years ago, he learned to forgive. 

 

He still remembered the nine months he spent waiting in vain for the seal to crack itself apart, for the day he would be free. But somewhere in all his hate and loneliness, there was something else, too. Moments he wouldn’t have dared to reveal to anyone else- times when he looked back and wondered if years of keeping everyone at arm’s length was worth it. 

 

_ Kurama spent nine months curling his chakra around Naruto, watching him grow with disdain, fury, but also-- affection.   _

 

On October tenth, Kurama was freed from his prison, only to be immediately jailed in a new one.

 

Kushina and Minato died that night, only a whisper of their chakra left imbedded into his seal. Kurama was left with a fragile, orphaned child who had no one to love and no one who loved him, other than an Anbu who always silently watched from afar.    
  


Throughout most Naruto’s childhood, Kurama slept. Fed him pieces chakra and reminded him to eat something other than ramen every now and then, but ignored his calls and meager questions. That bright personality persisted though, never falling to the clutches of despair even when people hurt him over and over again. 

 

And then… 

 

Then came the night of Naruto’s 10th birthday, the anniversary of the Kyuubi’s massacre. 

 

Somehow, Naruto had ended up lost in an alleyway just in time for a group of jounins with anger flaring like fire and drenched in the foul reek of alcohol to find him. 

 

_ They tore him apart.  _

 

From limb to limb, shoulder to shoulder and down to his feet. Kurama offered his chakra desperately, cursing at him to just  _ use it already _ and to protect himself.  

 

And that brat had the audacity to shut out Kurama. Not a single hint of anger was leaking through the gates of Kurama’s cage, none that he could harness and take control of, anyway. Only sadness and guilt clouded the mindscape as Naruto was thrown onto the ground with shocking force. 

 

_ Kit. Fishcake.  _

 

Gone like a light.  _ Just like Hagoromo and Ashura and all his siblings-  _

 

Kurama roared and pushed against the damned eight trigrams seal with all the force of his centuries-old power, throwing everything he had at Naruto. The seal Minato had woven so delicately shattered, bringing victory coursing through Kurama’s veins at the prospect of being  _ free- _

 

But then he turned and spotted the small body leaning against cold tiles. Felt the brittle bones beneath ragged and bloodied flesh, and stopped. Naruto had a life ahead of him, something he didn’t get to enjoy. This was a boy who had to endure abuse- mentally and physically- for 10 years. His only friend was probably the ramen stand owner, Teuchi. 

 

His brave words echoed in Kurama’s mind. 

 

_ ‘I’m gonna be Hokage someday, believe it!’ _

 

Kami- that boy was just so young and naive. Always blindly chasing after a frivolous dream simply out of the need for acceptance. 

 

_ But something about him…  _ It reminded Kurama that even a monster like him could dare to hope. 

 

So Kurama scooped up Naruto with his chakra and healed him. Mended skin and bone, mind and soul until no scars remained. He tore the memory of dying out of Naruto’s mind and locked it up- replacing it with happy emotions, making sure that the boy would never have to remember such pain.

 

_ My Kit.  _

 

A single flower bloomed in his mindscape that day, bright and lively against the decayed walls of ash and ruin. The ceiling tiles seemed to cave in on itself just enough to reveal the tiniest sliver of golden sunlight that washed down upon Kurama’s crimson fur. He was suddenly reminded of something that Hagoromo had told him eons ago.

 

_ “A mindscape is not only a connection between a bijuu and their jinchuuriki, but a reflection of your state of mind.”  _

 

Back then, Kurama had been too young and untroubled to care about what the Sage’s words. 

 

_ “If only you have love in your heart, it will remain an eden of your soul.”  _

 

After all, he had never experienced a mindscape of love before. Not with Mito, and certainly not with Kushina. 

 

Kurama brushed over the small yellow flower with gentle paws and let a smile curve over his lips. 

 

_ Finally. _

 

___ 

 

“You think they’re gonna,” Naruto puckered up his lips in a wet, sloppy manner. “Kissy-kiss?” 

 

“I hate you.” Sasuke blatantly stated. 

 

Sakura whipped her head around from the tree branch she was perching on. “If you talk any louder,  _ they’re  _ gonna hear you!” She whispered angrily, pointing at Iruka and Kakashi. The two seemed like old friends as they chatted the night away, but team seven had other ideas for the blossoming couple- 

 

_ Uh oh.  _ Sasuke thought with aching disappointment.  _ Sakura’s infected me with her sappiness.  _

 

Iruka and Kakashi started to talk again, though their words were muffled. Leaves rustled softly as the three over-eager genin dove forward to watch the scene in front of them unravel. Despite the time, Ichiraku’s was still open. The distinct smell of freshly-made miso char siu ramen made Naruto’s mouth water as he watched his two teachers devour the delicious bowls of food. 

 

“I’m hungry…” He complained. 

 

Sakura shot him a dark look. “You wanna blow our cover?” 

 

“But food-” 

 

Sasuke slapped a hand over Naruto’s mouth. “No.” 

 

“They’re leaving already?” Sakura moaned as Iruka and Kakashi walked out of the stall together. “But nothing spicy happened!” 

 

“Define spicy.” 

 

Naruto puckered up his lips again. Sasuke gagged in response. “We’re leaving.”

___

 

Kakashi wasn’t a jounin for nothing. Although his genin concealed their chakra beautifully, it was still quite obvious that they were holed up in a tree behind Ichiraku’s.  _ Nosey little jerks.  _

 

After escorting Iruka back to his house, Kakashi decided to check up on his team- who were probably all at Naruto’s apartment, seeing all the lights were on. 

 

Kakashi stumbled into the main bedroom where his genin team were piled up against each other and huffed a soft laugh to himself. They were fast asleep and snoring loudly without a single care in the world. Naruto had his hand tucked in between Sasuke’s shoulder blades, and Sakura’s arm was completely buried beneath her teammate’s legs- how were they even sleeping like that? 

 

It was astonishing how quickly they had become familiar with each other. It was enough for them to be talking to each other without simultaneously being at each other’s throats, but having sleepovers? They went from a team with no hope of ever living up to that title to a dysfunctional family of three 12-year-olds and one jounin. Kakashi sighed to himself and turned off the lights. The faint blush of dawn just barely touched the horizon, but they had an entire day to themselves- along with plenty of time to sleep as much as they wanted. Their first official C-rank mission would begin in just a few days. Kakashi left behind a note reminding them to pack clothes and prepare for the trip. 

 

Hopefully, it would prove to be better than their last one. 

 

_ Hopefully.  _

 

___

 

“Hey guys,” Naruto shook Sasuke and Sakura awake. “I’m the kyuubi’s jinchuuriki.”

 

“Cool.” Sakura mumbled before falling back beneath the covers. 

 

Sasuke hissed like a cat at the onslaught of cold air. “Shut up and let me sleep.”

 

___ 

 

Hinata’s heart danced as her team came into view. At the forest’s edge was a small clearing similar to that of a training area, full of overgrown grass that speckled with poppies. 

 

“Oi! Hinata!” Kiba shouted, Akamaru at his side yipping happily as she came closer. Shino dipped his head in acknowledgement, the soft buzz of kikaichu belying his good mood.   
  


“Good morning.” Kurenai-sensei twirled a kunai between her fingers and motioned for them to come closer. “This is your mission for today. Our client wants us to trim the field into pristine shape and prepare it for shinobi training.” She looked over her shoulder at the forlorn greens twisting and splintering their way from bushes and weeds, and winked. “I’m sure you’ll get it done in no time.” 

 

Before Hinata could blink Kiba was already zipping his way between the rows of leaves and branches with all the ferocity that a genin could offer. “You can count on us!” He shouted. 

 

“He- he’s got s-some energy,” Hinata murmured, more to herself than anything. 

 

Shino huffed. “You’re right. Why? Kiba is always energetic, and eager to complete a job to the best of his ability. It is an admirable trait, both as a potential ally and as a fellow shinobi.” He waved a hand and a small swarm of brown kikaichu bugs flew from underneath his sleeves. “Shall we?” He turned to look back at Hinata. She nodded, and settled into a gentle fist stance. All they had to do was cut down a few blades of grass. Easy enough. 

 

___

 

Hinata sighed heavily and dropped to the base of an oak tree, water bottle in hand and sweat clinging to her skin. That D-rank mission was more difficult than she had anticipated, though not unwelcomed. Any time spent with her teammates and teacher was enough. 

 

And the small amount of petty cash that came along with D-ranks never went astray, especially since her father couldn’t tap into it. Hinata sends a small prayer up for small mercies.

 

“Good job!” Kurenai-sensei congratulated, handing Kiba and Shino water while surveying the newly laid-out training arena with a hint of pride glinting off her crimson eyes. The freshly cut grass glimmered in the afternoon, and though it was nearly October, the temperature of the Land of Fire was soaring still, as if it didn't want to leave summer behind. Hinata gulped down her water eagerly and admired her handiwork. Straw dummies, spare wooden logs and weapon targets replaced weeds- and she was sure that their client would enjoy the field that team 10  plowed for them. 

 

Kiba wrinkled his nose. “I’m so tired!” He complained as Akamaru whined. Hinata stroked the ninken’s head comfortingly, earning her a gentle rub on the legs.

 

“Come on,” Kurenai-sensei sat beside the three genin. “You’ll be doing work far more difficult than this when you become Chunin.” She glanced sideways at them with a sly smile on her face. 

 

“Chunin?” Shino prompted with curiosity. Kiba perked up. Hinata herself was quite interested, though the idea of becoming a Chunin at their age seemed impossible. It was quite rare for rookies.

 

Kurenai-sensei laughed as she inspected their faces. “Don’t worry about it.”

 

The genin relaxed. Kiba instantly turned to Shino and began to talk his ears off, but Hinata stayed silent. Chunin, Kurenai-sensei had said. She glanced up at the sky of pure blue and pursed her lips in wonder. Even if she were to become a Chunin, would her father approve? Would he be proud of her for once? Would he finally declare her as his heir? 

 

___

 

Shikamaru woke up to marble stones being thrown at his window. They clattered against the window pane, making such a raucous noise that he- a heavy sleeper, even in the Nara clan- could not stand. Shikamaru crawled out of his bed by the tips of his fingers with his torso hanging barely halfway to the ground, and face planted straight into the wooden floor. 

 

“What a draaag.” He mumbled, his voice muffled against the ground. 

 

Another rock scraped against glass. “Shikamaru!” An angry voice screamed. Shikamaru pushed his chin off the floor with a sigh stuck in his throat and immediately tripped over a bunch of books.  _ Oh _ , he thought, borderline embarrassed at himself.  _ That’s right. I was reading last night.  _ The books towered over his nightstand, old and fading at the edges, but they were the documentaries of a lost nation, and he wasn’t stupid enough to mistreat them. Uzushiogakure was beyond interesting to learn about, especially considering the fact that Shikamaru Nara was not someone who liked to study. He was certain that the librarian of the Archives wouldn’t miss the books and she probably never bothered to check them, anyway. 

 

Pulling open his screen door, Shikamaru blinked away his tiredness and tried to adjust to the bright lights of day. How long had he slept for? 

 

“Good morning.” Ino deadpanned with an irritated expression on her face. “Training calls.” 

 

Shikamaru could only stare at his teammate in a mix of awe, confusion and surprise. Ino was hardly someone who trained- the only exception being when she was forced to. But now she held fierce determination in her crystalline blue eyes, as if a daring competition had finally brought out her wild side.  _ Oh wait. Maybe that’s actually what happened. Nevermind.  _ Shikamaru brushed his long hair out of his face and huffed a breath. “Oh?” he challenged. 

 

Ino just glared and crossed her arms. “Oh.” 

 

It was amusing to taunt Ino, but if Shikamaru did it again she would probably stick his head on a knife. And since he was somewhat attached to his head, the Nara let himself be dragged by the elbows to his front door.    
  


“I’m not even dressed.” He reminded Ino, who cursed colorfully to herself and plastered a twitching smile on her face. “Be quick!” She gritted out cheerfully, and being the merciful goddess that she was, let him go.    
  


_ What a pain.  _ __  
  


___

 

Kiba was a sensor, first and foremost, and a pretty good one at that. Although his range wasn’t nearly as cultured as his sister, who was several years older than him, it was still impressive for his age. He couldn’t sense with just his hearing alone quite yet, but hey, he had a decent nose. Kiba sometimes spent all day just memorizing and tracking people’s scents. He came to realize that everyone had a scent that was unique to them and wasn’t affected by how much they showered or didn’t. Hinata smelled like lavenders and green tea, and sometimes even dried blood and tears, which worried Kiba to no end. Shino smelled like insect dens, and Kurenai-sensei’s scent was faint- like a whisper of rose perfume and nothing more.

 

The streets of Konoha were just as busy as ever, bustling with traders, vendors, and locals. Their smells blended together in an orchestra of food and flowers. Kiba chuckled with giddy happiness at the challenge of so many scents to unravel, and promptly began to tuck away each one in his mind while Akamaru sniffed along the road. As he picked through the laces of different smells, three bright ones jumped out at him, eerily familiar in a way that clung to the edges of his memory- and Kiba couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

 

The first was a fervent spring that reminded him of cherry blossoms scattered in the air, surrounded by freshly-cut grass and mochi-ice cream. The second was a forest of pine and birch, the tang of crushed bark and black ink. The third was a roaring ocean of saltwater and brine, their acrid burn of foxfire like a light in the midst of darkness, followed by citrus. 

 

_ An interesting bunch,  _ Kiba decided.  _ But not interesting enough to beat the best sensor in Konoha! _ The statement was obviously exaggerated, but motivation was motivation for him. 

 

He chased after the fleeting signatures from shop to shop, admiring how intertwined they were. Best friends, maybe? Surprisingly, they jumped from place to place, unlike the merchants and customers whose scents lingered. Every time Kiba was certain that he had hit the mark on their location, suddenly, an incident would occur in the town square and then they would be gone again. A watermelon bursted there, someone’s pie exploded in another, all sorts of strange and unexplainable incidents. 

 

“Bastards-!” A stall vendor cursed loudly, and Kiba stared in amazement as sticky syrup dripped from the top of his head. He didn’t feel the least bit of sympathy for the man, as  Tanaka was well-known as a petty and unfair vendor to almost all his customers- his scent was detestable, too. Kiba didn’t like it. Looking back though, it seemed that everything bad happened to the mean shop owners and skipped over kind ones. Whoever the three were, they sure liked to play judge. 

 

Muffled giggles from above  Tanaka’s stall drew Kiba’s attention away and onto the roof. Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto waved at Kiba from their hiding spot in between the folds of tent covers. And just like that, all the whimsy and mystery surrounding his self-assigned mission fell away. Worst of all, Kiba wasn’t imagining it. Their scents clicked right into place. It was surprising just how much their image had changed in the past seven months. Apparently they were best friends now? And what happened to Sasuke? 

 

_ Come here,  _ Sakura mouthed, and Kiba hesitantly leaped up to their level. 

 

“What are you guys doing?” He asked as soon as the three had calmed from their laughing fit. 

 

Naruto flashed a bright smile. “Pranking people.” 

 

Kiba rolled his eyes. Seemed like a Naruto enough thing to do.  “That’s quite obvious.” He mumbled. From the way Sasuke sighed deeply, apparently he thought so too. “Can I join?” he asked with a wolfish grin, and team seven grinned from ear to ear in reply. 

 

Within moments, Sakura and Naruto had linked elbows with him on either side, and Sasuke just buried his face in his hands. Kiba had a sinking feeling that he’d just bitten off far more than he could chew. But— 

 

His mama didn’t raise no quitter.

 

___

  
  



	4. Journey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> LMAO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG SCHOOL IS N A S T Y 
> 
> sorry for sneaking in fluff and not actual content I was just UUHhhHHh
> 
> ;)

Tenten wrung her fingers together with annoyance, ignoring the unpolished weapons that lay out in front of her. Another loud  _ crash  _ echoed through her shop, and she bit back a groan.    
  
“The genin are at it again,” Her father retorted with a sly grin. 

  
Tenten turned to him with creased eyebrows. “Don’t tell me you find this funny,” She warned. 

 

“Oh, it certainly is for  _ me,”  _ He pushed back his glasses and smoothed out packets of kunai, ignoring the noise outside. “Tanaka’s an asshole.” He muttered. 

 

_ “Dad.”  _

 

___

 

The trip to team 7’s C-rank mission took no more than two days. They landed just south of Wave Country, barely two miles from the Great Naruto Bridge. A small fishing town was nestled between the two intersections of land, carefully drawn out to the ocean and just barely crossing the border to Tea Country. 

 

“Mi-minu-- down?” Naruto stared at the lettering on the gates of the town in confusion. 

 

Sakura snorted when she carefully studied the words herself. “Naruto, that’s katakana, not hiragana.” She pointed to the letters. “Seinara Mizu-town.” 

 

Naruto groaned with annoyance. “Why are there so many different ways to write?” 

 

“Don’t ask me that.” She replied, a faint smile tilting the corners of her lips. 

 

As the team neared the entrance, the sound of locals and bustle of merchants grew increasingly louder with every step. It was similar to Konoha in that way-- friendly and welcoming on the outside. Naruto thought his head would explode from all the strange smells of raw fish and oysters, something his village in the mainland would usually never get to enjoy. He could feel as Kurama grumbled low in the mindscape at the stench. His nose was even more sensitive than Kiba’s, surprisingly. 

 

_ *You’re always so grumpy,* _ Naruto joked.

 

The fox only sighed and swept his tail further into himself.  * _ Seafood.* _ He grumbled in disdain, one red eye twitching. 

 

Naruto could only hold in laughter from the statement, ignoring the strange look from Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke’s eye-roll. 

 

As Kakashi-sensei stopped to speak to the border guards, Naruto looked turned to his teammates, who were all equally tired in their own rights. Sakura’s drooping eyes could only tell the story of her relentless training while Sasuke winced every time someone raised their voice. Naruto was immensely proud of his friends, though. 

 

“Hey, do you think we’ll be able to have some fun here?” Naruto smiled slyly. He eyed the full stalls of meats and fish with interest. 

 

Sakura could only shake her head. “We’re here for politics. I’m pretty sure that destroying the town would only backfire.” She cringed at the idea, but a hint of humor lay behind her wary green eyes. 

 

Sasuke grunted. Naruto pouted in his direction and could have sworn that the slightest hint of color crept up his neck. 

 

_ Whatever could that mean? _ Kurama snorted something like ‘idiot’ in the back of his mind, but Naruto ignored that and continued to tease his friends until they reached their inn and settled. 

 

The next day would be even more difficult than their journey to the edge’s of the Land of Fire, but he looked forward to the challenge. Even if it would be more paperwork than action. Naruto tucked the blanket closer to him, sandwiched between a snoring Sakura and Sasuke. He listened to the sounds of their even breathing and slumber quickly stole his conscious as he drifted into darkness. 

 

___

 

Chouza set down his glass of whiskey on the rocks and glanced sideways at the entry of the bar as a dark figure walked in.. “Inoichi,” He began, Shikaku turning at his voice.

 

“Please explain why my son is eating twice his normal amount and  _ still getting thinner,”  _

 

Inoichi turned a nice shade of blue while Shikaku coughed awkwardly into his cup. 

 

___

 

Hinata wiped away the blood gathered near her brow. Her eyes strained at the edges, chakra already near depletion-- yet the tendrils of energy still pulsated through her temple, as if they knew the consequences of giving up. Her father stood in front of her with a straight back and hands neatly aligned in a fighting position. 

 

“Again.” He commanded. 

 

Hinata grimaced but stood on her feet, uneven and wobbling but raised her chin nonetheless. Her father almost scoffed at her expression. 

 

“Your actions are meaningless until you win.” He placed one foot in front of another, and struck. Hinata barely had time to duck before his palms hit her collarbone with such force that her breath caught in her throat. She allowed for the pain to dull into a whisper, and replied with her own move. She swung her arm in a graceful arc above her father’s head, feinting to the right as he moved to block the punch that would never come. Instead, Hinata curled her fingers together in a gentle fist form and aimed for his stomach.

 

_ She would do it this time. Prove that she was worthy and be accepted by him. Be welcomed by him and praised by him.  _

 

Hinata’s hand stopped halfway as it was pushed to her side in an almost effortless push. She slowly raised her eyes to meet her father’s, dread curling in her gut like poison. His look of vague detachment and disappointment greeted her. He was silent, but it said enough. Hinata bowed and ran back to her room, wishing that she had not been born while ignoring the hot tears that ran down her bloodied skin. 

 

___

 

Shikamaru winced as he stretched, sore spots lighting up all around his arms. Kami-- Ino had been ruthless with training. Had managed to find within her that nearly unbelievable conviction that dredged up even  _ his  _ chakra from the slumbering depths in which he never bothered to use. Shikamaru leaned against his bedroom wall and pulled out a book from his stacks of Uzushio documents. He was bored enough. Might as well read to pass time. 

 

The book he held was thin-- barely enough pages to be called a book. Yellowed stains that reminded him of coffee speckled the paper. Shikamaru flipped to the first page, curiosity dancing in his eyes as he read over the contents. 

 

_ To whichever soul my words will reach-- let this be a reminder of the debt that Konoha has to pay.  _

 

His mind stumbled in surprise. 

 

_ It has been three days, twenty hours and fourteen minutes since Iwagakure and Takigakure attacked Uzushio. My troops are dwindling with every second that passes, despite our militia being one of the most renowned in history. Uzushiogakure is a village of strength and power, nearly rivaling that of Konoha’s, but its population is few. The seal masters tore through the enemy’s front lines on the first day, but even their chakra is waning, and they cannot fight for all of us. I guide the fighters to the best of my ability. I am the general, and I cannot let my people down. However, I cannot help but wonder if our spirit is enough to win the war.  _

 

_ Five days, two hours, and thirty minutes _

 

_ Our messages to Konohagakure have all either been intercepted, or ignored completely. No one has come to aid us. The village that was supposed to be sister to our own, the village that had sworn to be our ally since the dawn of their creation, has given up. Does lady Mito not feel the call of her people in her veins? Has she forgotten?  _

 

_ My own daughter was sent to be their village’s jinchuriki. It was mostly to protect her, yes-- but how could they have disregarded our village’s sacrifices? Our burdens? It is a mystery to all of us. The nations used to call our people red-hot-blooded. How would they view us now? Tired, hurt, and broken beyond repair? Our once flourishing grass plains and beaches now colored with the blood of enemies and friends, littered with their swords and kunai of iron and silver?  _

 

_ I am the last seal master left on the island. I am the last council member, the last curse-breaker. How ironic of me to be the one casting curses this time.  _

 

_ I have held the front lines for ten days, one hour, and twenty-four minutes. I was severely wounded last night;  the goddess of death beckons me, and I cannot hold her off any longer. I pray that Kushina will find happiness in Konohagakure, and that she will one day return to her homeland and set all of our souls free. With the blood of our people and the wills of those before us, I seal one last time.  _

 

_ Be the bridge, be the light. When iron melts, when flowers spring from fields of blood-- let the souls be witness, and return home.  _

 

_ Signed, First Legion General Kairi Uzumaki _

 

Shikamaru’s jaw dropped open as he read the last sentence and he closed it just as quickly. He knew that Konohagakure was not able to reach Uzushio in time to send aid, but he could not have imagined that the letters were still received and hidden away all the same. That centuries of information from a village past were just stored in shelves and forgotten by the very people who had abandoned it. 

 

He sighed deeply and placed it back in the pile. Thinking was  _ really _ a drag. But one thing bothered him-- nagged at his mind relentlessly. What did Kairi Uzumaki seal? Perhaps the island itself? Or the thousands of clan techniques in it? Kairi was mentioned was many times in other books and records as a prominent member of the Uzumaki clan and a well-known seal master. Whatever she may have sealed, it would be difficult for just about anyone to destroy it. 

 

Was it even meant to be destroyed? 

 

Shikamaru stared at his ceiling as if it would respond to his question. 

 

_ Everything _ would have been so much easier if only Shikamaru could talk to Naruto. It was such a pity that he was practically half-way across the five great nations, probably relaxing in some beautiful beach somewhere near Tea country. 

 

Shikamaru rolled his eyes in annoyance. He needed sleep. 

 

___

 

Sasuke took great advantage of the half-day that team seven had before their official mission began by scouring the entirety of Seinara-Mizu town’s marketplace. 

 

The chilly breeze reminded him of winter that lingered right around the corner, but it was pleasant enough that it hadn’t bothered him one bit while he explored the many shops and stands that the town had to offer. Sakura and Naruto had decided to run off to the opposite direction-- apparently to bake something or other-- and Kakashi-sensei was off to some political business. Honestly, Sasuke relished the peace and quiet.

 

Distinctly, he wondered if his wandering was truly aimless. He was looking for something, he knew. It just didn’t quite occur to him  _ what _ it was he so yearned for. Sasuke stopped by at a popular stall and paused to take in the items. He eyed the weapons spread out on weaved mats in a shop and sighed. They were made beautifully and carried the same fine features as a master swords-crafter would create, but somehow, didn’t feel right to him. He picked up a silver  _ odachi  _ from off of the stand, nearly dropping it when the weight of the blade passed onto him. While Sakura would have appreciated the sharp-edge… to him, it was nothing more than a bad memory. It was the type of sword that his family-- the Uchiha clan, would use as one of their most common tool for training. 

 

He had seen his brother wield it many times before. His father, mother-- 

 

The  _ odachi  _ was a weapon that was meant to take lives. Itachi had used it to take lives. Sooner or later, the blade would be coated in a layer of blood, held by murderers, shinobi, and assassins. That was one day soon to be  _ his  _ burden as well. That was what his father wanted for him-- that was what his entire family wanted of him. To be someone that killed their way to victory and was beheld as nothing more than a soulless weapon. The  _ odachi _ was just as cursed as he was.

 

Sakura had chosen the Katana, and Sasuke respected that. Admired that, even, for the girl who used to foolishly dedicate everything she did to him. For the sister and friend he gained. 

 

In a way, Naruto had chosen, too. 

 

Sasuke placed it back onto the stand and thanked the manager of the stall, turning on his heels to leave. He stopped a few steps later and looked back.  People still bustled around it, talking with one another and laughing.    
  


Sasuke saw a girl no older than nine pick up the same  _ odachi _ that he had, a smile twisting on her lips in place of his frown.

 

A silent question lingered in his mind, curious and demanding. 

 

_ What will I choose?  _

 

___ 

 

Sakura’s hands  _ hurt.  _ She knew that once she started up some real training with Uzuki-san and Gekko-san it would be even worse, but  _ kami _ , Kakashi-sensei could fight. Her fingers blistered terribly after her first day with the katana. They stung, but being by her teammate’s side made it bearable. She wouldn’t let that stop her, though. Kenjutsu was beyond fun and more exhilarating than anything else she’d ever practiced as a kunoichi-- far more enjoyable than that medical ninjutsu stuff her academy teachers had always forced her to do. 

 

Sakura sighed and set down her teacup on the inn table and glanced into the kitchen, where Naruto was baking something or other for her to rate. Seinara-Mizu town sure was strange. Why would the inn even have kitchens in rooms? 

 

“It’s done!” Naruto yelled triumphantly, carrying a tray of brownies down to the table. A heavy  _ thunk  _ sounded through the room as he set it-- more like slammed it-- down. Naruto stood above them with hands planted on his hips, a look of determination on his face. 

 

Sakura raised an eyebrow at the oddly shaped brown desserts and mentally checked off her mother’s trusty list of dessert requirements. The form was definitely a two, color was probably around a four. 

 

Naruto gestured to the tray with a sweeping hand. “Try it!” 

 

Sakura hesitantly bit into the brownie and was completely floored when it actually  _ tasted good.  _

 

Not burnt, too salty or too sweet, but  _ delicious.  _ Yeah, some of it burned her tongue, but--

 

And she had only started to teach him barely a month ago. Sakura scarfed down another chunk of the brownie. The texture was heavenly. 

 

Naruto shifted nervously, biting down on his lower lip in anticipation. “Is it good?”    
  


“Yes!” Sakura gushed, astonished and unbelievably proud at the same time. “You learn fast.” 

 

His responding grin was contagious. 

 

___

 

Sasuke smelled the brownies before he saw them. Through the door of the hotel, the intoxicatingly sweet aroma of freshly-baked chocolate brownies and matcha tea beckoned to him like a fish to water. He rarely ate desserts on the rare occasion of one- it was  _ extremely  _ good, or two- that someone force-fed him. Sasuke held back a sigh and pushed the door open.

 

“Ah, Sasuke! You’re back-” Sakura barely began to say when--

 

Naruto shoved an odd-looking brownie into Sasuke’s face. “Try this!” He yelled through chocolate-covered teeth. 

 

Sasuke answered immediately. “No.” 

 

“Please?” 

 

“Idiot, I said no.” 

  
Naruto pouted. “I’ll make you onigiri rice balls with cherry tomato,” He edged. 

 

Sasuke accepted the piece of brownie with careful fingers. It stuck to the edges of his hands.

 

“You seriously want me to eat this?” He asked Naruto, who just rolled his eyes. 

 

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke popped the thing in his mouth and forced himself to chew. Sakura blew out a muffled giggle. 

 

As bits of dark chocolate melted on his tongue, Sasuke held back a look of surprise. “So it isn’t poison,” He remarked carefully, but a warm feeling crept down his throat. It was better than he thought it would be.

 

“Of course it isn’t, asshole!” Naruto smirked and made a peace sign. “You’re welcome.” 

 

Sasuke rolled his eyes as Sakura wheezed with laughter. 

 

____ 

 

There was a symbol on her desk, long forgotten and hidden away by stacks of paintings. The woman traced a finger over the patterned swirl, an exhausted sigh buried in her throat. The pride she once beheld so feverishly had dulled into nothing more than a faint whisper of the blood she had left behind. Just like her hair, it had faded with time. Had it been five years or thirty? She could no longer tell. 

 

History was dangerous, and so was her lineage. Yet she could not ignore a deep burning in her heart, so achingly familiar and painful all at once. 

 

Had they finally returned home? Had someone finally answered the call of the wind and waters?

 

____ 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fans of Sarah J Maas wink at me pls


	5. Fear of the Water

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the long wait this took!!!!! I kinda lost interest but started getting back into it. I promise I'm not gonna abandon this anytime soon. 
> 
> anyway lollololololol thank you for your kind comments, really helped me get through and finish heh I feel bad for y'all honestly. Must suck to wait like 2+ months only to get 3000 words in one chap-- SORRY SORRY IKIK please be patient haha 
> 
> please don't kill me lmao 
> 
> also, title of chap is Fear of the Water by SYML, please listen to it it's {so good} 
> 
> PS. I think Mook_Aron is taking a break from writing for a while, so it's gonna be just me for a bit :/ #nobetawedielikemen

Kurama missed his siblings. He missed the sound of their voices and the endless bickering that was born out the same love that had carved them worlds apart.

 

But the mental link was stretched all-too-thin from the years of unuse, barely able to hold itself together. Their presences, once so bright and vibrant in his mind, had withered. Kurama was the mirror looking into a glassy world of monotone shapes. Between the centuries he’d felt some wink out of existence, a flame that flickered as if someone doused water over it. He had grown used to this. To the loneliness and regret that he hadn’t been able to do anything for his siblings when they were ensnared in a trap and caged like pets.

 

_But it didn’t hurt any less._

 

It was as if there stood a wall between him and his siblings, intent on intercepting any messages he could have said. _But what is there to say?_ Kurama mused. _And even If I said anything, would they listen?_

 

It had been at least a millennia since he last met with all of his siblings, and even then it was under the circumstances of war.

 

It was quiet without them by his side.

 

Kurama peered through Naruto's eyes, lurking just beneath his radar. He was resting or something of the sort, laughing while his teammates exchanged smiles and new kunai.

 

 _*Kurama, what do you think of this?*_ Naruto asked, eyeing the new weapon that he had received. _*Kakashi-sensei gave us presents. ‘Says it’s a tradition from Konoha or whatever.*_

 

Kurama examined the kunai. It was bound at the handle with thinned bamboo strips that curled around in neat rows. The metal was carved expertly well, and an insignia decorated the flat side. _*This was made by a master,*_ Kurama muttered, mildly impressed. _*Still not nearly on par with the weapons made back in my day-*_

 

Naruto stuck his tongue out. His two teammates turned to look at him in confusion, but he waved them off. “Just making casual conversation with Kurama,” Naruto sighed. “He says that the kunai made in his day were better.”

 

Sakura huffed an amused laugh. “Wow, someone’s picky about their kunai.”

 

Naruto held back a chortle of messy giggles as Sasuke raised his eyebrows at him.

 

The group traded jabs back and forth, and Kurama tuned them out for his self-preservation and sanity. He rolled his eyes knowing full well that no one could see him do so. Beyond the surprise at how calmly Naruto’s teammates handled realizing that a Jinchuriki walked in their midst, Kurama was glad that Naruto had friends to look after him.

 

What he found, agonizingly enough, was that Naruto’s happiness made his loneliness a little more bearable.

 

____

 

The kunai weighed heavy in his palms, and Sasuke let himself grin at receiving such a valuable gift.

 

“We’re still meeting Kakashi-sensei at a training field on the beach, right?” He asked.

Sakura nodded, turning over her kunai again and again as if she were critiquing a rare jewel. “Yep. I think he’ll be teaching us about…” She pursed her lips in thought. “More seals, maybe?”

 

Naruto perked up at the mention of seals. “Yes!” He shouted, pumping a fist into the air. Sasuke dipped his head to hide his blushed ears at the movement. Jaw clenched and fists curled, he forced himself to calm his erratic heart. Naruto’s hair shone nearly auburn in the sunset, bringing a aura of glowing red haze around his head when sunlight filtered through the hotel rooms just right. Sitting opposite of him and Sakura, Sasuke had the perfect view of his teammate. It was surprising how he had come to memorize the little details, though he’d tried his hardest to forget them. Emotions were too frustrating and distracting to even think about.

 

Sasuke mentally cursed himself.

 

As if she had read his mind, Sakura tilted her head in an inquisitive gesture, an unreadable, almost-smile set on her face. “Perhaps even some taijutsu involved.” She finished her thought.

 

“I’m going to clean my katana,” She announced, and pushed back her chair with a loud screech. “Try not to blow up the town.” With a glare like daggers aimed at Sasuke, Sakura exited the living room, all the while ignoring him fuming at her retreating figure.

 

She had just left him alone with Naruto. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been alone with the idiot before, but now he understood why one-on-one conversation, especially with Naruto, was difficult for him. 

 

Naruto immediately started to rant about something or other, talking a million words per second. Sasuke tuned him out, naturally, deciding to focus on a spot on the wall.

 

“Yeah, like I said, Sasuke--” Naruto continued. “Sasuke? Are you listening?”

 

“Hn.” He grunted nonchalantly.

 

 

Naruto pouted. “Don’t be a meanie,” He said, and the sentence made him seem a lot younger than he really was.

 

Sasuke snorted and raised his eyebrows as if to say, _go on. Make your point._

 

Naruto took this cue as an invitation to start ranting again, and he did, with equally exuberant energy as before.

 

“So, so, so-- what if Kakashi-sensei--”

 

Sasuke stifled a sigh, and tucked his head beneath his arm.

 

Might as well take a nap.

 

____

 

Sand was a difficult terrain to train on. Especially for genin from Konoha, a village set so deep inland that Kakashi’s students probably had never even laid eyes on the beach before. Sand was shifty and unpredictable, and it made movement and concentration all the more demanding on stamina.

 

Today, his students would be in for one wild ride.

 

Kakashi steadied himself and focused chakra into sharp ridges, combating the unstable ground beneath him. It was nearing nighttime, the sun slowly receding past the distance. Soon, the sky would be dark and there would no light to help guide them other than the faint shine of the moon. Kakashi took a deep breath in just as three bright chakra signatures hovered behind him.

 

“Kakashi-sensei, you’re on time?” Came Sakura’s voice.

 

Kakashi turned and met his students with a smile. “Always happy to see you brats,” He said. It wasn’t a lie.

 

Naruto shifted his feet on the wooden boardwalk a few inches above Kakashi. He stared at the ground beneath him, scrutinizing it with squinted eyes.

 

“Are we going to train here?” He asked. “But it’s so dark out!”

 

Kakashi looked towards the horizon to hide his smile, waiting patiently for his students to step onto the arena. He walked further from the boardwalk.

 

 

And listened with great satisfaction and humor as Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura tripped over their own feet as they hit the sand. They’d have to match their chakra levels to the exact ones beneath the sands, especially on the soft stretch of shoreline that was the land of the eddies. Gone were the genin soon-to-be chuunin, now replaced with stumbling children that reminded Kakashi of just how young they were.

 

They trudged forward all the same, their steps heavy on the unfamiliar ground.

 

“Damn you,” Sakura muttered under her breath.

 

Kakashi just hm’d in response.

 

___

 

Sakura gained advantage on the sand first. After all, she had the most talent in chakra-control. It had been… difficult, to say the least. Kakashi-sensei wasn’t kidding when he told them that they were up for a challenge.

 

Although her sand-chakra wasn’t exactly perfect, at least she was better than her teammates. Usually they would work in tandem, exchanging signals and looking out for each other in each and every spar, but they’re at the disadvantage point now. 

 

“Focus them onto your entire leg! Not just the-” She knocked a shuriken off-course with her katana while Sasuke managed to dodge a punch from Kakashi-sensei.

 

_“Not just the soles!”_

 

Naruto whipped his head toward her, mouth open to warn her just as a blast of water streamed past her face.

 

“Dammit.” She cursed quietly, and settled more of her chakra into her ankles. Chakra-control was a well-valued skill in kenjutsu masters, but she didn’t have access to Naruto or Sasuke’s large reserves. Within a few more minutes, she’d have to sit out.

 

Sasuke, sweaty and tired and _undeniably pissed_ , threw a catapult of lighting in Kakashi-sensei’s face.

 

Sakura bit back her complaint.

 

“Kiddos, don’t eat the sand!” Kakashi-sensei called out in a sing-songy voice just as he dipped Naruto into the ground. Naruto responded by kicking him in the chest.

 

While Sakura watched them fight, she realized that Kakashi-sensei wasn’t just beating them up for fun, as much as he may or may not enjoy that. He was quickly correcting their movements, turning an elbow inwards to avoid painful blows and making sure that Naruto, even in his stupor, wasn’t hurting himself.

 

Sakura was smiling before she could stop herself.

 

But then the ache in her bones returned, as Sakura was reminded of just how tired she was.

 

Sasuke nodded to her and tossed her a spare kunai. Of course. Short-range weapons would be better to use in a situation like this. She had gone through enough katana-training to be able to use it, but she still wasn’t quite as efficient with it as with regular ninja-tools. She mouthed her thanks before leaping off her feet and throwing it at Kakashi-sensei with as much force as she could muster.

 

“Okay!” Kakashi-sensei grinned, deftly catching the kunai without even looking at it. “That’s it for today.”

 

All three genin collapsed on the sand.

 

“I’m taking the bath first,” Naruto announced once they could catch their breath.

 

Sasuke rubbed his eyes with one arm and stuck out the middle finger. “You didn’t even do anything.”

 

“Did too!”

 

“Did not.”

 

“Did too!”

 

“Did not.”

 

Sakura shut her eyes, sighing. “Respectfully, shut your mouth.” She hissed. “Both of you.”

 

Kakashi-sensei forced a laugh into a cough. “Not bad.”

 

Sakura snorted. She was glad that their teacher was trying to be positive--

 

Overall, she would prefer a hot shower and rest over a lecture.

 

“Your stamina has all improved a lot since day one. The teamwork, despite being deterred by an unfamiliar training ground, still held.” He paused to pull out an orange book from his pocket. “I’m proud.”

 

He said the last part quietly, but they all heard. The corners of Sakura’s lips lifted again. It was rare that Kakashi-sensei dared to show any emotion, but pride was a greatly appreciated one.

 

“Yeah, we love you too.” Naruto mumbled, earning him a handful of sand thrown over his face. He sat up immediately, spitting out pieces from his mouth and fixing a glare on Sasuke.

 

“I’m gonna put a glitter bomb in your bath.”

 

This time, Sakura just dunked him in sand again. “He gets the bath last,” She said to Sasuke, and they shook on it solemnly.

 

___

 

Naruto dreamed about Uzushio. It wasn’t often that he dreamed at all, though this time, the images were as vivid as the closest thing to reality. This dream-- vibrant in all its colors and senses, pulled at him. It shook him from sleep, and when Naruto woke, he was covered in a thin sheen of sweat on his brow and a voice in his head telling him to run.

 

His teammates were sound asleep.

 

Naruto sighed and lifted the blankets over himself again, trying his hardest to fall back into the dream. If only he went back in time a minute, an hour, maybe he’d still be in a dream that he suddenly can’t recall.

 

The memory was gone in a second, there yet not. Like a faded photograph that you couldn’t quite see. He knew that he had dreamt of his mother’s hometown, of an island long gone, but he just--

 

Couldn’t remember.

 

And then that memory disappeared too, leaving him with only one thought.

 

_Run._

 

He couldn’t remember leaving the inn, running barefoot out the boardwalk, stepping easily through the sand where a few hours ago he had been struggling, like his brain had completely forgotten yet some part of himself remembered. His feet carried themselves over the ground, steadily. Surely.

 

_Naruto was running and running and running--_

 

He stopped at the beach, suddenly realizing where he had come to. His hair was matted by the mist and wind, and he only wore a thin shirt and shorts. It was nearing winter, too. Naruto shivered and rubbed his arms. _*Kurama?*_

 

The Bijuu answered by breathing warmth into him. _*Naruto, do you know where you are?*_

 

Naruto groaned in relief as warmth, steady as the flow of river, soothed his aching bones. _*I think... I’m near Uzushio?*_ He answered.

 

 

Kurama didn’t respond, just a presence hovering at the edge of his mind. _*I believe that this is something you’ll have to figure out yourself.*_

 

 

Naruto’s jaw dropped in protest. “What?” He muttered out loud. Kurama’s chakra shifted slowly, the human equivalent of sleepiness. With a sigh, Naruto surveyed the area.

 

The ocean didn’t hold any hidden bridges to Uzushio. No trails, hints, and certainly no one to guide him there. The waves would be useless to tread with chakra because of the enormous difference in range and influx. He had learned that, at least.

 

Naruto just stared, endlessly, peering through the fog, wishing that there had at least been a sign. There had been a reason that none of the journals Shikamaru had shared with him reported the sighting of the island, or even lootings. If everyone could find Uzushio that easily, then it would have been pilfered by robbers already—

 

And in its immense wealth and richness in jewels and silk, Uzushio should have been found a while ago.

 

There were only records of people visiting and leaving before the war, not any after.

 

Naruto sighed, a pitfall of despair aching in his chest. He knew that there was no way he would make it there, with map or no. He didn’t have a boat. Not even a compass. But something in him called him to the water like bees to a flower, a deep hunger that could never be satisfied.

 

 _Run, run._ His heart screamed. So Naruto did.

 

He put one, reluctant foot on the water. He had remembered the lessons Kakashi had taught them a while ago, making sure that they had understood the dangers of chakra-balancing on ocean water. It would be too unstable, he had warned. Not even jounins of my level would be able to handle the ever-changing waves.

 

There was a feeling lodged in his throat. He was afraid, afraid of falling through the surface and afraid of being swallowed by the endless sea, but mostly, afraid of his own instincts. That something that had lead him here wasn’t just out of curiosity, was it?

 

His foot moved of its own accord, and before he could register what he was doing, Naruto was walking. On ocean water.

 

Naruto leaped forward, praying to whatever godly power was out there to keep him warm and dry. But after the first step, he stopped hesitating. Chakra-balancing on ocean water, even as he felt the surging sea beneath him, was familiar. As familiar as a routine practiced over and over again, like a prank he’d done a hundred times over. Everything seemed to be amplified, from the soft lull of the waves to the tangy salt-water smell. There was an emotion he couldn’t quite name, a feeling that he’d been here before.

 

 _Lifetimes_ ago.

 

Naruto looked around. The fog had closed on him, surrounded him on all sides. He glanced behind him to find that he was so far into the sea that couldn’t even make out the shoreline anymore. Surprisingly, the panic that Naruto thought he would be feeling didn’t come. He just took in a deep breath, steadied himself, and walked forward.

 

The water rippled, whirlpools twisting the water current into different directions. Naruto’s heart tripped as he saw the fog thin in front of him. The night was still young, still barely past midnight, so the darkness was to be expected.

 

There was a dock.

 

It was the most obvious thing that he could think of, but Naruto, in all his time spent learning about the invasion of Taki and Kiri, somehow couldn’t fathom the fact that they’d left a dock intact. And beneath his surprise, he knew that it was only logical. Enemy nin could only access Uzushio through boats and ships, and they needed somewhere to leave them--

 

But through all their savagery and delight in tearing up an entire kingdom and killing thousands, they somehow left this wooden dock unharmed. Naruto didn’t know whether he wanted to cry or laugh. Through the mist, broken away by years of disuse, was a dock. 

 

It was empty, devoid of life, but it was _there_. Some remnant of his past, a confirmation that Uzushio existed.

 

He lifted himself onto it, testing the structure before standing to his full height. Somehow, he felt older. Humbled by standing in such an ancient place.

 

Naruto wiped his clammy hands on his shorts, briefly worried that his team wouldn’t be able to find him here. The chill was gone, replaced by an eerie wind that played with his hair. The fear was starting to return. In front of him was the entrance to a ghost-kingdom, an era long gone. Erased from Konoha’s history out of shame.

 

Not only that, but it looked like it had never seen the sun. Naruto couldn’t quite see past the first columns where the dock met the land, but from the greying hues of the dirt and complete lack of plants--

 

It was like all the life energy had been sucked out of it. It had nearly been half a century since the invasion, and yet nothing grew from the dirt. No plants, not even a single blade of grass.

 

He’d learned enough from Botanics class to know that this wasn’t normal.

 

Naruto huffed a breath, then paused. The air smelled faintly of blood and was still sizzling with chakra. It smelled like a battlefield. His hair stood on end, a silent warning.

 

It was as if the island was frozen in time, like the decay and growth had never even touched it before it locked itself away.

 

_Why?_

 

Before Naruto could ask anything aloud-- _what if spirits could hear him? That’d be pretty cool_ \--The tide behind him began to draw back. He could only flinch before the wind was a jagged blade against his skin, the tang of salt-water suddenly smelling of fresh blood and rotting corpses. The island itself was like a whirlpool that he was now trapped in. All around him was a swirling storm, angry and accusing.

 

Like he was the enemy.

 

 _No!_ Naruto wanted to shout. _Wait, no! Please! I’m an Uzumaki-_

 

But all he got in response is another howl of the wind.

 

What could he do? Call on Kurama to get out? Borrow his power amidst a raging typhoon?

 

What had his mother warned him of before her chakra impression faded?

 

_Look underneath the underneath._

 

Naruto ducked his head from flying shrapnel. Doors, possibly entire roofs, clanged in the distance, blown up by the wind; there were bits and pieces of the entire island in the air.

 

_Look underneath the underneath._

 

Naruto chanted the words quietly. What had she meant by that?

 

Her voice returned to him, a snippet of memory swallowed by all else; _“-I’m proud to be an Uzumaki, y’know. Our blood holds power, after all-”_

 

Naruto’s eyes shot open. Messily, shivering from the freezing cold once again, he bit into his finger with all the force he could muster. Through the blurry haze, he willed a small drop of blood out of his frosted skin to hit the ground.

 

And when it did, everything stopped.

 

___

 

 


	6. Undone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frick LMAO I FORGOT THiS EXISTED BUT ALL YOUR COMMENTS GIVE ME LIFE so (please continue making them :) ) 
> 
> THANK YOU for keeping up with an author with NO SCHEDULE WHATSOEVER. 
> 
> (also short chap because schoolwork is very hdkfjghdksfjh lately sorry lololo I promise that I am alive and I will finish this!!! don't give up on me!!!) 
> 
> Sorry again!!! also no beta hahah at this point I am just surprised at how much people like this honestly I just. wiewgr. kdhsf. you know what I mean?
> 
>  
> 
> (Other author here, hiya— sorry I’m literally entirely absent rn but adulthood + kids + life is seriously kicking my butt rn so I love you all)

The unfamiliar scene of a town square spread out before Naruto like an old painting. It was a bit hazy, blurred around the edges, but he was there. Held in limbo, unable to  _ move, speak--  _

 

Just observe as an onlooker, as a view that pierced through time and space. 

 

With a vague feeling of homesickness as he gazed at the townspeople, Naruto held back the panic gnawing at him. It was midday, sun shining brightly like a star overhead, lighting up every nook and cranny. Naruto blinked at the light. The air was laden with the smell of ramen and oden, but mingled beneath all that, a refreshing tang of saltwater, as if he was standing next to the ocean and breathing it all in. The wind swept in and the children followed, laughing as they ran.    
  


 

Naruto strained to listen to their voices, spread so thin to his ears that he could barely hear anything. The people were smiling,  _ living,  _ with their families and their island with so much happiness in their hearts. He could feel it, even as he watched from half-a-century too late. This was a memory, buried beneath the pile of rubble of bone that was now Uzushio. 

 

It used to be just as bright and happy as this.    
  


Naruto swallowed back the lump of emotion in his throat. A girl skipped past him, hair tumbling behind her like a hurricane of red. She turned her head, just barely, and Naruto had an instinct to stop her. His hands reached out before he could stop himself, and even if he couldn’t move, he tried to anyway. She was past him in a second. Disappeared beyond the horizon to whatever endeavors laid ahead. 

 

_ Mom,  _ he wanted to say. Even if here she was nothing close to the woman that he met a month ago.  _ Mom,  _ he wanted to say, because there were tears dripping down his face and a pain in his chest that he couldn’t seem to push away. 

 

What would it have been like to grow up here? 

 

To live amongst his clan-- _ his family _ \-- and spend his days chasing the tide on a sunset shore? 

 

Now there was a desire he’d never acknowledged before. Naruto stood in place, chest heaving with a sort of emptiness he was all too familiar with. 

 

A second later, his vision  _ morphed.  _ The world spun, and Naruto let out a call of protest as he was dragged from the memory. 

 

Someone tapped his shoulder, and Naruto jerked around only to see an entire gathering of people looking at him. 

 

The town square looked a little closer to what he’d seen at the edge of the dock. Naruto flinched at the sudden change, a question on his tongue. The sky was an angry gray, fumes of smoke rising into the air. What used to be rows of houses became piles of ashes and toppled stone. 

 

There was a woman in front of him, dressed in a general’s armor with hair tied back neatly in a ponytail-- familiar, and yet not. She held something in her hands, the item cupped gently beneath calloused fingers stained with red. A crowd of people stood behind her, cloudy eyes peering into Naruto’s. They spoke softly, edges of conversation in a language that he couldn’t understand. 

 

Naruto blanched at the sight. Those were  _ his  _ people. Torn by the war and lost to the nations.

 

The woman, as if noticing his horror, just minced a difficult smile and grasped his hands, pushing the object into them. It was a small and round pendant with the Uzumaki symbol carved into it. Naruto stared at it for a heartbeat. 

 

She stepped back, clasped her hands to her heart and took a deep breath. 

  
“Be the bridge, be the light. When iron melts, when flowers spring from fields of blood-- let the souls be witness, and return home.” She looked to the sky, and spoke the words from memory like a prayer. There was something familiar about the way her eyes lifted, as if a storm had been caged inside them. Her smile was sad, almost wistful as she lowered her chin in a silent goodbye.    
  


Naruto just nodded, unsure of what to do. 

 

Then the pendant in his hands started to glow, radiating light as if it had the energy of the sun hidden beneath its surface. Naruto’s jaw dropped in awe. 

 

But the light was brightening, filling up the space. He could only close his eyes as it blinded him. 

 

_ Not again,  _ he thought with exasperation. 

 

And a second later, he saw nothing at all. 

 

___   
  


It had been a long time since Kakashi slept without being plagued by nightmares, but last night was one of them. 

 

When he awoke, it was one of the most peaceful mornings he’d ever greeted. The gray clouds had all rolled away by the time the sun had risen, and the light beckoned to him like fish to water. It was a different scene than the one that he’d greeted yesterday, as if something had swept through the town and taken away all the fog and murky atmosphere with it. 

 

His students were planning on sleeping in, no doubt, to rest their weary selves after what even Kakashi would consider as quite the challenging ordeal. Maybe he would be forgiving this time and wake Sakura up first, who was surprisingly the least stingy of all three in the mornings-- 

 

No,  _ wait.  _

 

_ That wasn’t right.  _

 

Kakashi immediately steeled his senses. He wasn’t a sensor, but he’d learned enough to be familiar with those around him. At least, he had known enough to recognize that there were two chakra signatures in the room next to his, not three. There was a growing panic gnawing at his insides, but Kakashi stuffed it down. Perhaps one of them had gone out to train, or to scour for food-- 

  
_ No one in team seven would leave on their own to train. They all knew that. Besides, there were still entire trays of cookies and home-baked desserts in the fridge. If they wanted to snack, they would have gotten it straight from there.  _

 

Kakashi pushed away his covers and crept into the hallway, a hand resting on the kunai strapped to his thigh. His footsteps were silent, even as the aged wood threatened to creak underneath him. 

 

Gently, he pushed open the door. 

 

Sasuke and Sakura were still asleep. There was one set of bedding in the middle of the makeshift futon, and its comforter was rumpled and shifted to the side. Kakashi walked closer, feeling them with his hands only to find it cold. Clearly, Naruto left hours ago. There was no sign of a break in, and even if there was, Kakashi would have known. His eyes narrowed, studying the room. Nothing else was amiss. It was as if he’d left on his own, gone without a trace. 

 

“Sasuke, Sakura,” He called, gently shaking their shoulders. They swatted at his fingers, but didn’t respond. Sakura mumbled something and turned over, eyes squinting when Kakashi shoved open the curtains. 

 

“Naruto is gone,” He said, voice balancing on wary and harsh. 

 

That got their attention. Sasuke rubbed at his face blearily. “What do you mean, gone?” He questioned. 

 

Kakashi carefully leveled an eye on the expanse of shoreline outside the windows. He ignored the voices in his head that told him,  _ your fault, your fault, your fault.  _

 

Sasuke sat up then and sucked in a breath. 

 

_ Naruto, where are you?  _

 

_ ___ _

 

Kairi Uzumaki’s chakra impression was beginning to fade. 

 

She had never been so overjoyed. 

 

She knew the price of a curse, of course. Its demands were never met with simple acknowledgment, after all. It was equal take and equal give in the art of sealing, and curse-making wasn’t any different. 

 

It was the curse that bound her spirit to the island, her body to the mainland. She was separated by the distance between her home and the place she’d been condemned to watch over. By the town that her body was shackled to.    
  


And so she waited. Years and years of generations bygone, time and  _ distance  _ carving her worlds apart from herself. But the curse had upheld its part of the deal, and protected Uzushio in return.  So she watched as it turned the tide on those who dared to trespass, and tore open their boats. 

 

They stopped coming after the fourth year. The fog around her home grew, a darkness that clouded any view into the distance. Maybe it was a blessing that it prevented people from desecrating it any further, but she couldn’t help but let her resolve crumble as the once breathtaking beauty of Uzushiogakure was erased. 

 

Her daughter never returned.    
  


Perhaps she found a new life in Konoha, or even married and settled with a family of her own. 

 

But that didn’t matter now. For someone new had broken the curse with promise of a better life. He was young, Uzumaki, and a jinchuriki container of  _ all things,  _ but she’d tasted his bravery as soon as he set foot on the island. There was something familiar about him that made her sad, almost wistful.

 

That didn’t matter much, either. She had been drifting in between life and death, and he’d freed her prison. Uzushio had been a lost, forgotten island of ghosts, and he’d set them free as well.    
  


Kairi smiled as she stepped out to the beach, the wind carrying her hair free as surely as it did the ocean waves. She was grateful for the young stranger, for the jinchuriki whose soul felt so similar to Kushina’s. It was his doing that brought requiem. 

  
Kairi took a stumbling gasp, choking back sobs as she inhaled the fresh air. 

 

In that moment, she was young again. Hair red and eyes bright, ancient majesty tumbling down around her. 

 

In the next, she was gone. 

 

___

 

Naruto awoke to sunlight. He was lying on the wooden planks of the dock, still dressed in last night’s pajamas. There was a gentle breeze blowing at his back, a little chill that ran through the air-- but it felt comfortable. LIke an embrace. 

 

Naruto rubbed at his bleary eyes. The sky above him was clear as day, not a single cloud in sight to see.    
  


_ Oh.  _

 

The memories came back to him all at once. Naruto shot up like an arrow with a heaving breath, swiveling his head around to survey the area. 

 

And he found himself tearing up. 

 

Bright stalks of new plants rose up from the wooden planks to greet him. A coat of fresh moss coated the dock as if it’d grown in overnight. The entire area before him was changed, overflowing to the brim with energy and life-- restored of its previous glory. Naruto took it all in, pride echoing in him. He felt...  _ Different _ , somehow. Changed for the better. There was a new kind of vivacity coursing through his veins, brighter than a wildfire.    
  


**_*You did it,*_** Kurama remarked with a satisfied huff. 

 

“I did,” Naruto whispered, almost afraid to break the magic. He surveyed the area, drinking it all in. It was foreign and familiar all at once, carrying a call that resonated like an echo deep from the ocean. 

 

The wind tickled his face. It seemed that the island was a living thing, reacting to Naruto’s every thought with vigor. He took a step, then another, and soon he was running past the dock and deeper into Uzushio. 

 

Plants bent to meet his touch. Naruto brushed past leaves and grass, a kind of wilderness taking over him. All around him, the land sang with birdsong and the rich smell of petrichor. It was addicting. There was so much here to find, to recover. Here was his heritage, the blood of his blood, the heart of his heart. 

 

The presence of Kurama was as bright as ever here. He no longer felt like an old ghost. 

 

“Kurama-Kurama-Kurama! Can you feel it?” Naruto shouted in happiness. He reached his arms into the air, stretching his hands to the forest canopy. Bits of light fluttered through edges of crowning leaves, warmth glowing on Naruto’s skin. It was as if his hands were set aflame by every touch of sun. Everything was amplified to him by a tenfold. 

 

***I can,*** Was the only response.  ***But aren’t you forgetting something?***

  
Naruto paused in his delight. Confused. 

 

“Something? I-” 

 

And it suddenly dawned on him. Kakashi-sensei. Sasuke. Sakura. He’d left them behind.    
  


“Oh  _ shit.”  _

 

**_*Language, you brat.*_ **

 

Naruto ignored the sly comment from Kurama and looked down at himself again. The euphoria slowly seeped away as he picked at the ruined pajamas. Bits of dust and water seeped into the fabric, turning the once bright orange color a muddy shade of  _good o'l dirt._

 

“This,” He began, letting out a sigh of annoyance. “Is very not good, unfortunately.” 

 

***Well? Aren’t you going to find them now?*** Kurama ventured. There was an insistent tone in his voice that made Naruto flush with embarrassment. 

 

“Of course I will! But... But what about Uzushio? I can’t just..  _ Leave.”  _

 

Naruto was torn between running off the island at this second to find his teammates and staying. What would they have to say about this island? His heritage? Of course, they would be panicked to find him running off in the middle of the night, but-- 

 

The place he was standing in was barely edging into an abandoned courtyard. Although the plants had grown back in and sunlight peered through treetops, it still felt empty. It was nothing like the memory that he’d been given, but at least it was healing. Naruto couldn’t just leave it now. He had a duty to it as much as he did Konoha. 

 

Kurama perked up again.  ***Why don’t you just** **_bring them here?*_ **

 

Naruto opened his mouth to respond, but the words were caught in his throat. Kurama lurked in the back of his mind, a mix between incredulity and exasperation. When Naruto hesitated to speak, Kurama filled in.    
  


***I’ve seen how they look at you. Hell, I’ve spent the past year watching your disgustingly sweet friendship grow. Don’t stand here and doubt them, brat.”**

 

And he was right. Naruto gnawed at his lips in worry. 

 

***Well?***

 

“Uh”   
  


***That’s not an answer.***

 

“Yes?” 

 

Kurama rolled his eyes.  ***Your island will not disappear if you leave it for ten minutes.***

 

Naruto huffed a breath. As much as he wanted to explore deeper into the ruins, his teammates would be worried sick about him if he stayed. Besides, he couldn’t just abandon Kakashi-sensei. Naruto clasped his hands together towards the ground. 

 

“I promise that I will return! With my friends! Just-- just wait for me, okay?” 

 

There was no response but the soft rustle of leaves against ocean air, but Naruto could’ve sworn that a branch dipped in understanding. He spared one last glance at the clearing before he took off running once more, back as straight as an arrow. 

 

The dock was a reassuring sight. Naruto hesitated at the sight of water, but when he took a step, the waves still crashing against the wood, he didn’t fall through. It seemed that he could, at the very least, still hold a decent amount of control. Heaving a sigh of relief, Naruto picked up his pace towards the shoreline. Step after step he moved, the water tickling the bottom of his feet. Naruto’s eyes flickered down, and he stopped in his tracks. 

 

Koi fish followed him like a bee to a flower. Dots of blooming gold weaving around patterns of red covered their bodies in swirls of color. They gathered near his toes and blew bubbles as if they were greeting him. Naruto gaped in surprise and awe. 

 

“Hi!” He blurted out, unsure of what else to say.  _ Fish don’t talk.  _ He thought to himself. 

 

***Wow, what a wondrous discovery,*** Kurama deadpanned. 

 

Naruto’s head snapped up. “Yes! Oops. I have to--” 

 

“Naruto!” 

 

Naruto followed the sound of his name to the distant shoreline. The voice was distinctly familiar. Sasuke. Naruto huffed a sigh and burst into a sprint.    
  


A smirk edged on the corner of his lips, tugging at a smile. 

 

The coast was nothing like the hazy, clouded place that he’d trained in last night. It was brighter, and the sand shifted like gold atop the clear water that crept along the edges. Naruto skidded on the sand. 

 

No doubt his teammates had already sensed his presence, so he simply smiled at the backs of Kakashi-sensei. His happiness was immediately replaced by anxiety as his teacher turned around with an expression of shock on his face-- by far the most emotion he’d ever shown. Sakura stepped out from behind. She too, mirrored Kakashi. 

 

Naruto shifted nervously on his feet. What would he get in punishment? A lecture? Probably. House-arrest? Probably. Child labor?  _ Probably-  _

 

“Naruto,” Sakura began. Naruto clenched his teeth in anticipation. Awaiting her rant. 

 

She just walked closer to him, her jaw dropped. At that moment, Sasuke ran over from the other side of a sand dune. They both shared a look of incredulity before facing Naruto once more.    
  


Oh god. Oh god. He would apologize  _ at length  _ if it was bad enough to make Sasuke shocked.  _ He would make them all an extra-spicy bowl of ramen with the best meat in the shinobi villages-  _

 

“Naruto,” Sakura repeated again. “Why is your hair red?” 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Ayyyyyyy did yeah like it? *laughs awkwardly*
> 
> Edit: MADE SOME CHANGES BECAUSE THE RICH TEXT FEATURE IN ARCHIVE IS SO WEIRD???? WHY ARE THE SPACES SO LARGE I AM CONUSIOn


End file.
